"I Am Another Yourself" at Hashimoto Contemporary

(Post transferred, original content written Saturday, November 29, 2014)

After spending almost 1/3 of the year working entirely on this body of work, I was both delighted and relieved at the wonderfully positive response to my solo show, 'I Am Another Yourself' at Hashimoto Contemporary this Sept. Apparently I wasn’t quite excited enough to be better at keeping up with my blog, however.

Featuring a range of new charcoal and graphite portraits, the exhibition was my attempt at shedding light on those who are frequently overlooked and unidentified.

(R to L) Lucky, Maurice and Tinesha. All works 42x94in, Charcoal & Graphite on Paper

(R to L) Gypsy, Kent and Spaceman O.T. #3 All works 42x94in, Charcoal & Graphite on Paper

The show featured 14 new works, varying in scale from my usual life-size drawings to several smaller, more compact pieces.

I created most of the works while participating in an art residency in Taos, New Mexico this summer at the Helene Wurlizter Foundation. The time was both productive and peaceful, and in the moments not in the studio I was able to enjoy wonderful conversations with 10 other residents who ranged in practice from composers to writers to fellow visual artists.

My casita was nestled among Cottonwood and Willow trees. 'm already missing the beautiful studio space looking out into the forest

In addition to the large works, I also created several smaller drawings. I kicked and screamed a bit when my curator suggested this as I love the life-size scale of my usual pieces so much. However, I ended up deeply enjoying the process making smaller pieces and felt like I was able to focus more on the mark-making in the works.

Laura, in progress. (Final drawing 12x23in)

I went into the residency feeling tired and a bit burnt out. Ironically, after a summer of working 14-16 hours almost every day I came back to the Bay feeling rested, rejuvenated and in love with the process of drawing again.