A certain poetry exists within the moments of refuge, a confusing place where we have experienced absence in a whole new way. This profound moment in our lives has brought about a unique manner of living. Security, intimacy, sanctuary, and the passage of time have all shifted to a deeper meaning. Beauty in the ordinary and intimate space that we have either accepted or resisted—but forced to surrender, nevertheless.
Going WITHIN shows us how we process direction and meaning and how these layers bridge our emotions and one another. This journey connects us to our mind and memory through our history, habits, secrets, and trauma, where we find scattered fragments of ourselves to piece together. And, of course, the whisper of isolation and lockdown throughout these works reminds us that we are all commonly yearning for freedom and direction.
WITHIN
Best of Show- Solace
Traci O'Dwyer
tea bags, beloved book pages, sheet remnants, white upstring
Roanoke, Texas
Composed of fragments of meaning, stitched together in the hopes of retaining memory. Tea bags, sheet fragments and beloved books become objects of beauty meant to capture stolen moments of comfort and care.
Director’s Choice- Home Sweet Home
Ron Longsdorf
wood, air filters, 9 months of dust, lighting
Savannah, Georgia
Text of "HOME" and "SWEET" are masked on air filters, over a period of 3 months, each filter collects dust to generate text. The final piece displays HOME SWEET HOME marking the first 9 months of the pandemic in the US.
Director’s Choice- Endeavour's Hands
Ray Besserdin
sculptured papers
Mentone, Australia
Hands here metaphorically express the similarity between the challenges of our endeavours and the flow of rivers. Life is never an easy path. The visual metaphor of strength from something so fluid as a river inevitably reaching its destination, meandering around obstacles.
Trikaya
Jeffrey Brackett
ink on paper
Muncie, Indiana
"Trikaya" ("Three Bodies") references the Mahayana Buddhist notion of "Three Bodies of the Buddha," which illustrates the interconnected nature of reality.
Something Worth Saving
Mia Smith
makeup removal cleansing towelettes, embroidery floss
Columbus, Ohio
The daily removal of my makeup over years has culminated in hundreds of abstract self-portraits on cleansing wipes. Assembled into a grid with thousands of stitches, the remnants of the foundation, lipstick, and mascara I wore speak to my daily return to a private space.
Seeking the good
Francesca Borgo
mixed media- acrylics, rocks, sand, gauze on canvassed board
Treviso, Italy
For me this piece is about the many layers and obstacles I have to adapt to in confusing and complex times, to feel clarity of mind and courage. Accepting shadows and roughness and searching for lights, somehow shaping my way out thanks to the painting, all this gives me again direction and purpose.
Imprints and Voids
Veiled Windows
Patty Kennedy-Zafred
hand silkscreened images on hand dyed fabrics, fusing, painting, image transfer of text, machine quilted, hand stitched binding
Murrysville, Pennsylvania
Based on vintage post card images, this piece is one in series of works portraying women from all over the world, with strikingly varied concepts of beauty. The images presented are Japanese geisha, and despite the often negative connotation, true geisha were highly trained in dance, music, and art. The calm expression in their faces was part of their allure; their years of rigorous training was designed to create a presence of subtlety, strength and grace.
Whispers and Echoes
Totally Confused
Those Sultry Voices
A Dream within a Dream
Where Do We Go From Here
Marian Yap
acrylic on canvas
Pacifica, California
I've always been curious about the amount of time that has to pass after a great event happens and visual artists start creating artwork related to that event.
Waiting for Work
Leslie Lyman
photography
Beverly, Massachusetts
:: Old bowls, with well worn grace, stand ready to welcome the next task. Their quiet dignity pay tribute to an imperfect domestic beauty. ::
Silence is Golden
Gigi Woodward
acrylic, gold paint, pencil, paper
San Diego, California
Suspended
Threshold
Cristi Frye
mixed media - polymer clay, found objects, acrylic paint
Burleson, Texas
Mechant 6
Debra Archibald
acrylic on canvas
Toronto, Canada
Imperial Gates
David Gootnick
Alaskan cedar, woven cloth
Washington, DC
My work is a contemporary interpretation of Kumiko, an ancient Japanese art form most commonly found in traditional Japanese homes on shoji doors and screens. Imperial Gates uses the kiri (Paulownia tree) kumiko pattern. In the past this pattern was used primarily by the Imperial family of Japan.
Self perspective
Three Sixty
Jacob Kulin
black oxide over steel rods on top of rusted steel plates
Boston, Massachusetts
Three squares, each containing 120 steel rods and titled to describe Three Sixty (as in 360degree circle). The 360 rods define three different sized circles within each square form. The composition transitions from outside square edge to inside round circle. The three forms have transparency yet provide a sense of enclosure with three round windows to look through…
Random Thoughts
Jean Howard
cotton fabric
Auxvasse, Missouri
"Random Thoughts" combines a series of complex configurations to create new relationships between the black and white shapes. It highlights the inter-connectedness of seemingly random thoughts that traverse through my brain on any given day.
I Cannot Stay Within These Lines
Generations
Nami Oshiro
ink on paper
Falls Church, Virginia
In times of uncertainty, relationships can remain a place of safety.
Closed 2
Entente Cordiale
Marlene Siff
acrylic on linen
Westport, Connecticut
“Entente Cordiale” is part of my body of work called “Elements of Peace.” Although color has been my muse forever, I selected white to represent an environment associated with peace and rest. It is soft, quiet, spiritual, unadorned and filled with infinite possibilities.
A Preservation of Character #1
Megan Sinclair
analog, large format photograph
Portland, Oregon
I remove the defenses that both protect and suppress me and look inward at what is left.
Private Granger
I Know
Leanne Trivett
photography
Johnson City, Tennessee
I am a visual artist that uses photography to narrate identity and to create images that show how details and color interact in the world and create drama. My theatrical and vocal performance background inspires me to explore self and images with dynamic stories.
Within
Confessional for a Very Small Sin
Janet Bogart
steel
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Peforated sheet steel, bent and welded into the form of a confessional.
La Penserosa
Lacrime (Tears)
Melanie Zibit
bronze
Shirley, Massachusetts
The title "tears" in Italian reflects the heart ache felt by today's generations of women.
Soul Fragments
Renee Kelly
mixed media on canvas
Novato, California
Addressing trauma and uncertainty, this work and the process to create it are a physical representation of the internal struggle to leave what is known, face fear and uncertainty, walk into uncharted territory with no sense of the outcome, and see what can be found there.
Sit With Me
Marjorie Fedyszyn
muslin, urethane foam, cotton thread
Minneapolis, Minnesota
My work emerges from the intersection of identity and emotional histories; a way of childhood salvation established by transforming the volatile chaos at home into worlds I could control. My inherent need to control situations remains strong.
This unprecedented time revealed how little we are able to influence outcomes from a global stance to the most personal. My practice of hand stitching and the wrangling of materials endures as a meditative act in centering.
Awaiting Angst
Stockholm Nights
Diane Warner-Wang
charcoal, Chinese ink, pen, water, oil
Palo Alto, California
Living in memories. Remembering time in Sweden during mid-Summer when nights were very short and very electric.
Lament
Andrea DuFlon
palm bark, watercolor, waxed linen
Portland, Oregon
The Treachery of Love
Paralyzed by Fear
John Lawler
digital
Hattiesburg, Mississippi
Low
A Summer Day I Can't Remember
Forest Spirits
Lynn Welker
acrylic with collage
Newport Beach, California
A friend in the Philippines described how his father reforested the family's property. After his father's death, he continued the project and created a vast forest by his home. Now his family enjoys the caring spirit these trees represent. If you look closely, you can feel their presence, as I did.
Meditation
Robin McCarthy
mixed media collage with hand-embroidered embellishments
Los Angeles, California
The Journey
Jacqueline Shuler
acrylic
Castle Rock, Colorado
Times of silence are times to travel within, to retreat. The journey is a daily and lifelong one.
Overgrown City
Ashley Alexandra
mixed media acrylic on canvas
Calgary, Canada
A post apocalyptic scene of a city returning to it's greener roots.
Subsume
Victoria Gamble
photography
Cypress, Texas
Burnout
Decompression
Rebecca Horne
mixed media
West Columbia, South Carolina
Decompression is such a relaxing and intriguing piece to look at. I love how the rough textures are combined with the cool soft colors and then finished off with a few very small sparkling glass beads and touches of warm gold. It makes me think of being cradled in clean sparking water.
Enveloped
The Room At The Edge of Emptiness
Anne Frank's Secret Annex Attic
Tyler Alpern
oil on linen
Boulder, Colorado
Anne Frank wrote from this place, " If I look up into the heavens, I think that it will all come right." That confining physical space hosted expansive views both found within her own self and out to the infinite universe.
In a High-rise Window
Jan Alice Keeling
watercolor
Nashville, Tennessee
Perched in the window of a high-rise, she is absorbed in her own dreamy world.
Remembering
Linda Anderson
cottons, bamboo batting, all hand painted raw edge applique pieces, free motion stitching
La Mesa, California
Inner Sanctum
Earth's Embrace
Karen Russo
stoneware, underglaze, casein, acrylic
Elmira, Oregon
within cerulean blue skies, i drink from the promise of cool rain
within the safe keeping of Earth’s Embrace, i dream
within the stillness, i am at peace
within i am unafraid
We Die Only Once and For a Very Long Time
Sudie Rakusin
oil paint, papier-maché, beadwork and mixed media on canvas
Hillsborough, North Carolina
I stopped painting on canvas in the early ‘90’s. During those years I learned how to sculpt in papier-mâché, painted on paper and learned techniques for manipulating pages in blank books to make windows, doors, deep recessed openings, etc. When I decided I was ready to go back onto canvas I knew the new pieces would look nothing like my earlier work, however, I couldn’t ‘see’ exactly how they would look. After doing two in this series I realized I could do anything I wanted; cutting into the canvas to make windows, building up the surface with papier-mâché to make birds wings, iguana scales, tree leaves. I could add beads and ribbon and found objects. The shape of the canvases were informed by the design. The possibilities were limitless. With each painting I challenged myself to do something I had not done before.
Let it Go
Vanessa Pineda Fox
acrylic
Irvington, New York
This artwork, reflects the emotional feeling of letting go. The calmness from letting whatever stress or sadness lies within you, to just melt away. Using a soothing, yet vibrant colour palette, mixed with a hand written message to "Let it Go" for good.
The Light Within Series: Complacency
Gina Blickenstaff
oil on canvas
Fort Collins, Colorado
In this painting, the couple represents the overfed and over materialistic masses in the developed world, who are pleased and content with their lives, and who are not paying attention to the starving masses who are in great need.
New Beginnings
Winter and Spring - Hand in Hand
Kensho-IV
Puja Kapur
mixed media on canvas
San Francisco, California
Kensho-IV is part of a series painted in isolation (2020-2022) inspired by a Japanese term from the Zen tradition: "Kensho", translated as "seeing one's (true) nature". It signifies a growth inspired by challenges to raise consciousness, a spiritual awakening by going "within" to find the light.
Joseph Cornell’s Forgotten Closet
Emotional Security
Roe LiBretto
watercolor and gold metallic acrylic on birch panel
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Our feelings, swimming in the tank of our subconscious mind respond to variations in the environment. It's important to embrace our responses as a reflection of our feelings, to be understood, nurtured or transformed, in our journey to self-actualization.
Altar #2
Deborah Perlman
mixed media
Hollywood, Florida
Altar #2 is one of a series of three pieces that explore the feeling of a sanctuary, a space that confronts the spiritual seeker with an altar and the opportunity to open oneself to a higher power. In this work, I wanted to create an inner sanctum, a place for reflection, meditation, and peace. Spiritual seeking is top of mind, with all the chaos and crises happening in the world today. I feel compelled to center myself and focus on inner peace.
Re/Construction: XLIII
Erin Zerbe
mixed media-plywood, pencil, grease crayons, chalk level, acrylic gel medium, photocopy transfer, book thread, nails, magnets, and cardstock
Marietta, Ohio
BirdWoman7: Insight
Judy Rookstool
mixed media on canvas board
San Jose, California
My BirdWoman series symbolizes women's desire for freedom. Each BirdWoman is transformed with the image of a bird in flight in order to break loose of earthly bonds and become who she is meant to be. She see this bird each day and knows it can teach her to fly.
Bodhisattva
Susan Fiori
ceramic sculpture
Laredo, Texas
My sculptural images often depict a sense of “aloneness”. This is not to be confused with loneliness but rather an interior place of containment or repose.
Self-Portrait
Fletcher Leo
acrylic paint, chalk, marker, magazine clippings on board
Mead, Washington
Inspired by the chaos and internal confusion I experienced in 2020.
Bonnie
Mykl Welch
acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas
San Jose, California
Portrait of a woman lost in thought at a coffee shop.
Asolas: Reading in quarantine
Susannah Israel
terracotta
Oakland, California
The Asolas series was made in lock-down and records the artist's life in isolation.
White Horse
Fear of Growing Older
Scout Purdy
oil and acrylic
Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
Pine Motel, Room Telephones
Gigi Salij
14-layer hand-pulled screenprint, acrylic ink on 110lb paper
Venice, California
Anti-Christ Bitch Slut Blues
Czessie Wojtkowski
digital
St. Louis, Missouri
This piece is about the shame and guilt felt after sexual trauma, and how harmful coping mechanisms can lead to a victim feeling even worse about themselves. The main subject is oriented to mimic an upside down cross, which is seen as evil by some Christians.
frequency of its own
Ghost Inversion
Colby Blake
oil on canvas
Newburgh, New York
Ghost Inversion depicts an amorphous bust of a figure in the splendor of our internal worlds. Our physicality is a shell for something richer inside of us - joy.
Closer Than You Think
Monica Johnson
acrylic, graphic and oil pastel
Carmel, California
I create art through intuition, trusting the flow of my process. I start with an intention, a place, feeling or memory, then let my instincts take over, experimenting with color, texture, materials, composition. Each step is guided by repeatedly connecting to my intention. I find this approach exciting and compelling, like watching a story unfold in real time.
Pink Peace
Tanis Meyers
mixed media/fiber
Lenexa, Kansas
Mixed Media work illustrating my diagnosis, through treatment, and recovery from breast cancer.
Retreat
Amalgamation
Morning Poem
Cristina Marian
acrylic, pencils, image transfer and oil on canvas
Bozeman, Montana
Through a range of media used in the painting, I create an unstable, ambiguous atmosphere that reflects and reminiscences upon my transitional experiences as an immigrant.
Beyond
Inklings of Ruined Holes and Corners
Kimberly Baum
fabric, yarn, poly-fil, wire, tubing, shelves
La Grande, Oregon
Seeking Shelter Within My Safe Circle
Joyce Wynes
digital
Davidson, North Carolina
This digital painting is about finding comfort within your safe zone. Patterns & organic shapes create a safe, circular space. I am encouraging you to find a place that you can refresh your mind so that returning to the norm becomes more tolerable.
Where It's Quiet
Weight of Air
Roxanne Schwartz
textile
Berkeley, California
Quiet meditation evokes floating collages of repurposed fiber scraps that drift and hover in the mind’s eye. The textured medleys stream and float calmly. Some glow, some recede, some inflame—all against bright but unassertive verdure. Gravity eludes vision within the imagination.