By: Madison Pritchard
“The Valdosta National 2021” was hosted by Valdosta State University Dedo Maranville Fine Arts Gallery. It is an all media competition that was shown virtually this year due to the pandemic. The juror and judge for the competition this year was Claire Dempster. Some of the featured artists in the show were Amy Broderick, Samuel Dunson, and Martha Underriner.
The exhibition was presented virtually this year. This allowed it to be accessible to all online from the following link, https://www.vsugallery.org/valdosta-national-2021.html. This allows for a different type of viewing experience for those who saw the show. Personally, an in-person experience with art is important to my experience and interaction with it. It is harder to appreciate a piece when you can only appreciate it through a photograph on a screen. However, in a pandemic, this is a much safer means of viewing work than the old-fashioned method of exhibiting and showing work. While I think we all dearly miss going and seeing art in person, I appreciate the gallery and the show’s precaution with keeping art lovers and creators safe during this time.
At the top of the site, there were three video works. Below that were three sections of photographs divided by a small gap and change in background color, but there is no organization in relation to theme, media, or subject. The photographs are of the artworks in the show. Each picture can be blown up into a larger display that explains the title, artist name, size of the piece, materials used, and the price if it is for sale. This format for the exhibition works quite well, for those who know about it. The weakness of the online format would be that it requires internet access for those who would like to see it. It also may be confusing or difficult to find for those not well versed in technology or the internet. However, the strength of it keeping the viewers safe in a pandemic much outweighs the weaknesses.
In her statement, juror Claire Dempster, explains what unifies all the works in the show. She states that all the works “navigate the heavy themes of 2020 including pandemic, racial and economic justice, personal trauma, and isolation alongside the powerful and often joyful presence of being in a myriad of identities and forms.” (Valdosta State University…). While reading through, it was easy to view and interpret the works in light of recent events, even if it differs from the artists’ intentions.
In Christine Baum’s Panic Room Wallpaper, the flat and repeating pattern caught my eyes as I scrolled down the site. It is a repeating block pattern of buds, leaves, blossoms, and stems in gold swirling on a pale-yellow background. When I saw this piece, it honestly confused me as to what it was representing or expressing. I then remembered that during the Black Lives Matter protests in Washington, it was said that Trump was sent to the panic room for safety while protestors were in the streets being attacked by heavily protected police who had rubber bullets and tear gas. It is my interpretation from the title and the golden details that it is drawing attention to the actions of the former President during these protests.
The second piece that grabbed my attention was Martha Underriner’s Hospitality. This piece is a steel coil bent into the shape of a kitchen mixer with a few glass measuring spoons carefully placed near by. The glass spoons are dainty and almost blend in with the white display surface, but the steel mixer cast a distorted shadow behind it. Without the title in my mind, I thought this piece was referring to how in the beginning of quarantine many of us picked up the hobby of baking and cooking to pass the time by modeling these cooking tools. However, the title, Hospitality, references the misogynistic expectations placed on women, when viewed through the feminist lens. The replication of kitchen utensils adds to this interpretation since oppressed women are expected to do the cooking, cleaning, and be the host (aka show hospitality).
The last work I was drawn to look into was Alex McClay’s If Only piece. This is a work made out of emergency blanket, fabric, and thread. It is a shimmery grid of dots in the shape of a tee shirt. Across the piece, the phrase “if only” repeats over and over. The material and phrase plays a large role in my interpretation of the work. It repeats the phrase that survivors of traumatic or emergency situations will say looking back on the situation. It is all too common for people to look back and think “if only” they had done something different, then it all could have been avoided. With 2020 in mind, I am sure there are many people worldwide who have experienced something horrible that they wish they could go back and change the outcome of. While I interpret the piece as a reflection of 2020, the artist statement adds a new layer of interpretation to the piece. McClay explains that text is included because it is the fundamental medium of communication. She applies the medium of her work as a form of boundaries and expression of survival. The artist states she is trying to disrupt the power dynamics of vulnerable spaces, such as our bodies and minds.
The rest of the exhibition features scenes of quarantine life, a few self-portraits, works about Black beauty, and socio-political pieces. This show was tasked with the daunting task of pulling together so many things the world and its artists have experienced into one cohesive exhibition. I believe that the judge and juror did a good job at creating a successful exhibition. It is safe for viewing and accessible. The show reaches over the span of such a long time and addresses many important topics and experiences in interesting works. Viewers from many different types of backgrounds will be able to appreciate many, if not all, of the artworks displayed. Every piece draws on some form of human experience which unifies us all in these treacherous times.
Madison Pritchard: Valdosta State University student in Art Education Program -2021