Friday 11th, June 2021

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Kendall Art Center in collaboration with Florida International University (FIU) and Miami International University of Art & Design presents Seeds of connection. This exhibition features watercolors, assemblages, sculptures, and fiber artworks by Dianna Grace, Karla Kantorovich, Leka and Evelyn Politzer. Curated by Paola Sierra and Arasay Vazquez.

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This exhibition features artworks by

 

Dianna Grace. M.F.A.

Karla Kantorovich. M.F.A.

Leka. M.F.A.

Evelyn Politzer. M.F.A.

 

Curators

 

Arasay Vazquez. M.F.A.

Paola Sierra. M.F.A.

 

Coordinators

 

Henry Ballate. M.F.A.

Kendall Art Center

Art Director  Chief Curator of The Rodríguez Collection

 

David Y. Chang. M.F.A.

Chairperson

Florida International University

 

Bryan Hiveley. M.F.A.

Chairperson

Miami International University of Art & Design

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SEEDS OF CONNECTION

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  We are living in a time and place when disconnect and distance from others are recent shared experiences. Seeds of connection considers the practice of four local artists to survey the ways in which connections are deliberated and approached in artwork. These links can be realized in how the artist chooses to generate meaning through material choice, shaping of narratives, and formal qualities of the work. In this curatorial exercise, artists Leka, Dianna Grace, Karla Kantorovich, and Evelyn Politzer, display unique approaches to their source of relation through watercolor, sculpture, assemblage, and fiber arts.

 

  The Oxford English Dictionary defines “connection” as: of immaterial union or joining together [1]. This exhibition stemmed from bridging connections between the artists chosen for this post-MFA show. Miami is a city familiar with movement, change, and is often considered a point of destination or site of departure. Located less than two miles from Miami Executive Airport, Seeds of connection at Kendall Art Center (KAC) ties participants through different immigrant experiences and a collective desire to bring disconnected parts together. It is worth looking at how connections are made in these artworks, which were created pre-pandemic and during. The works transform boundaries by exploring how reaching inward and outward can unfold as energy, physical transcendence, color, introspection, or a geographical location.

 

  Leka’s work reaches within the interior to find relations with the exterior world. She uses color to communicate the work’s underlying disposition. Dianna Grace’s work looks to physics and metaphysics to unravel the universal experience of the unknown. Her work often explores the circular form to investigate the overlap between science and imagination. Evelyn Politzer’s work is inherently tied to her home through the materials. She uses hand dyed merino wool produced by women who live in rural parts. Her work transcends boundaries, forges connections, and brings awareness to issues that stem from disconnect. Karla Kantorovich makes assemblages with found organic and inorganic materials and textiles. Her work accepts the passing of time, honors death and rebirth, and celebrates the ephemera of all things alive on earth. 

 

  The Kendall Art Center is an active and appealing place in South Florida’s art community. Home of the Rodriguez Collection, they are committed to promoting and preserving contemporary work through exciting programs and exhibitions. Seeds of connection is part of KAC’s collaboration with Florida International University (FIU) and Miami International University of Art & Design presenting recent Master of Fine Arts (MFA) graduates in Visual Arts. Each year, KAC launches curatorial projects exclusively for women artists as part of their Women in the Arts program. In doing so, they support visibility for emerging and mid-career creators and provide a broader scope for womens’ artwork.

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[1] “connection, n.”. OED Online. June 2021. Oxford University Press. 

  https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/39356

 

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