UNDERCURRENTS

Virginia Mahoney + Nathalie Miebach

October 5-29, 2023

SoWa First Friday Art Walk: Friday, Oct. 6 | 5:00–8:00 PM
Artist Talk: Saturday, October 21 | 4:00 PM RSVP

“Undercurrents” brings together the work of sculptors Virginia Mahoney and Nathalie Miebach. The exhibition takes the viewer below the surface of its bright geometry and ribboned remnants and beyond the embedded language of data and text. “Undercurrents” draws us deeper, into the corporeal, layered complexity of human experience with its mysteries and precarity. Mahoney’s specter-like figures, which evolved out of crushed and reclaimed old work, elicit the sensations and subtexts of human narratives. Their presence is an enigma, both assertive and ambiguous, their hand-stitched words and phrases twisting and questioning the labels we use to describe who we are, what we do, what we believe. For Miebach, the aftermath of weather disasters, and the subsequent struggle to adjust and rebuild, bring into focus the lived ordeals of climate change. While her sculptural weavings and wall installations are based on scientific methodologies and data, they evoke a visceral understanding of this looming crisis.

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Virginia Mahoney

Virginia Mahoney scans the undertow of human interactions, examining the disparity between surface appearances and underlying consequences. With complex, intricate forms and materials, her figures probe autobiographical stories and question accepted narratives. As she uncovers possibilities in the scraps, shards, and leftovers of a longstanding studio practice, her voice emerges in the rhythm of stiches, provocations of language, and discovery of new forms.

Mahoney holds an MFA in Ceramics from Cranbrook Academy of Art (MI) and a BA from the University of Florida. She was a Bromfield Gallery Solo 2022 Competition winner and has shown in juried and invitational exhibits both regionally and nationally. She has been published in Artscope Magazine and online in Hyperallergic, Boston Voyager and WBURArtery. Her work is in private collections and the Lancaster Art Museum (PA). She works from her home studio in Brockton, MA, and is a Core Member of Fountain Street.

Nathalie Miebach

Nathalie Miebach makes work that seeks to better understand the science behind extreme weather events and the complicated human responses that ensue. Of particular interest is how communities adapt / rebuild after a weather disaster. Using the methodologies and processes of both art and science, Miebach translates data related to ecology, oceanography and meteorology into woven sculptures, installations and musical scores. Central to this work is her desire to explore the role visual aesthetics play in the translation and understanding of climate change.

 Miebach holds an MSAE and MFA from Massachusetts College of Art and Design and a BA from Oberlin College. She is the recipient of numerous awards and residencies, including a Pollock-Krasner Award, Virginia A. Groot Foundation Award, TED Global Fellowship and two Massachusetts Cultural Council Fellowships. Her work has been shown in the US, Canada, Europe and Australia and has been reviewed by publications spanning fine arts, design, and technology. She lives in Boston and loves to play with Legos.