Hillyer Art Space > Past Exhibitions
2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006
The Burden of Representation: Contemporary Iranian Photography
Exhibition Dates: November 7 – December 21, 2008
The Burden of Representation: Contemporary Photography from Iran features new works by six Tehran-based photographers. The selected works offer insight into the multiple layers of Iranian society as experienced by those living within it. Each artist combines varying techniques within the medium of photography to express the profound and complex sentiments one feels about one’s homeland. This exhibition explores the notion of an authentic identity outside of expectations in contrast to the perceived identity.
Known Unknowns
Exhibition Dates: November 7 – December 21, 2008
IA&A’s Hillyer Art Space and Washington Project for the Arts (WPA) in conjunction with FotoWeek DC are proud to present Known Unknowns, a group photography exhibition curated by Amanda Maddox, Assistant Curator of Photography and Media at the Corcoran College of Art + Design. Taking its title from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s infamous phrase, the exhibition considers how the medium itself indicates that photographic representations cannot stand as forms of verification. It brings together four local artists – Avi Gupta, Kate MacDonell, Sandra Rottmann, and Chris Saah – whose work explores some of the complications and contradictions involved in treating photography as evidence.
Northmen’s Place Made Southfolk’s Thing: Landscapes from Finland to Nova Scotia by Paul Reuther
Exhibition Dates: September 5 – October 31, 2008
“Northmen’s Place Made Southfolk’s Thing: Landscapes of Finland and Nova Scotia is a painterly manifestation of Paul Reuther’s attraction to and passion for the landscape and culture of the north. The exhibition features the last few years of Reuther’s efforts to represent the landscapes of Maine, Maritime Canada and most recently, Kemijärvi, Finland where he attended an artist residency last summer. Northern lights, cool water-based climates, and the outdoors are typical characteristics in Reuther’s paintings, all of which were completed on location. “
Fragmented Light by Maro Vandorou
Exhibition Dates: September 5 – October 31, 2008
“Fragmented Light consists of original photographic material of Keramicos, an ancient cemetery in Athens, Greece, printed as Platinum Palladium prints. Vandorou uses an eclectic mix of photographic techniques spanning three centuries of photography to create a series of images that convey a sense of time passing, the brevity of life, and the fragility of both. All the images are taken with a medium format camera using black and white film, followed by a digital process to enlarge the negatives. The images are contact printed as Platinotypes on a rare, handmade paper made from the fibers of the Gampi bush found only in the wild, mountainous regions of Japan. The effect is a monochromatic, translucent image on a delicate paper that reflects the feeling of the images themselves: ephemeral, delicate and precious.”
MY NAME IS JASON by Reynolds and Griffin
Exhibition Dates: July 11 - August 29, 2008
Jason Reynolds and Jason Griffin are a collaborative artistic duo making their exhibition debut in Washington, DC at IA&A’s Hillyer Art Space. My Name is Jason will feature a selection of their most recent works which seamlessly mesh Reynold’s poetic prose with Griffin’s expressive paintings. In My Name is Jason, Reynolds and Griffin raise topics from introspection to pop culture to the senselessness of violence. Reynolds’ loaded and multifaceted words are ingrained in Griffin’s precise and bold brushstrokes, giving the artwork a consistent quality of intelligence and deep meaningfulness.
EVERY DAY by Mandy Burrow
Exhibition Dates: July 11 - August 29, 2008
Every Day by Mandy Burrow features five sculptural installations that explore life, death and resurrection. Through this artistic investigation, Burrow confronts the issue of time and its effects on memory. The work embodies the contrasts of what is there and what is not, what is remembered and what is forgotten. Burrow’s pieces transcend this divide between the past and present, the lost and found, and exist somewhere in the between.
AN ALLEGORY IN INK by Ben Tolman
Exhibition Dates: July 11 - August 29, 2008
An Allegory in Ink highlights Ben Tolman’s signature style of intensely detailed and micromanaged, large-scale ink drawings. Expanding from his obsession with monsters, fantastical creatures and unusual and bizarre scenes, Tolman presents a series of drawings exploring the human condition.
OLD BONES AND ARTIFACTS by Dave Moreland
Exhibition Dates: June 6 - July 2, 2008
Old Bones and Artifacts reveals two of Dave Moreland's explorations back in time and through the history of art. The exhibition features a selection of his newest repousse pieces, drawings, and constructions inspired by classical artwork and its preservation. The two different explorations manifest themselves into two different art forms reflecting varying inspirations. His repousse pieces fuse acrylic paints, metal and fabrics together to create textured images inspired by classical art and Greek mythology, while his drawings and constructions are a direct result of his efforts to connect with Native American people and their history.
CULTURAL PARALLELS by Ante Sardelic
Exhibition Dates: May 2 - May 30, 2008
Although Ante Sardeli? was trained as a sculptor, he is certainly an artist of many trades: from painting to mosaics to printmaking he has mastered techniques in a variety of mediums and continues to explore and expand his talents. For almost five decades now, Sardeli? has consistently presented us with works filled with energy, detail and a ‘Mediterraneanism’ that only a native Croatian could truly illustrate. Cultural Parallels features a selection of Sardeli?’s most recent drawings and paintings that exemplify his world-renowned style. This joint exhibition with the Embassy of Croatia highlights Sardeli?’s interest in demonstrating the interplay between his Croatian roots and ancient cultures of South America such as the Mayans and Incas. The promotion of global, cross cultural exchange is evident in his work which creates dialogue between unique sweeping organic forms and bold, vibrant colors.
NEW WORK by Anna U. Davis
Exhibition Dates: May 2 - May 30, 2008
Through her various inspirations, Anna creates a body of work connected through a common perspective: “women in their private life, naked and venerable. Women in the society, strong and brave.” Davis’ new works feature her latest paintings that demonstrate her wild ability to confront the power of a woman’s being while embracing what is commonly thought to make her weaker: her nude and exposed body. “I use the naked body in my art to express a raw nature of an emotion. I don’t see anything wrong with a naked body, to the contrary, I see beauty and truth.” These raw images offer insight into the female mind and experience both personal and public, and address them in a very apparent and unavoidable way. Davis’ work is provocative with a purpose, and meaningful with an edge.
AFTER THE FLOOD by Don Kimes
Exhibition Dates: March 7 – April 25, 2008
After the Flood, an exhibition by Don Kimes, features large-scale, abstract paintings both subtle and dramatic in nature. The work demonstrates Kimes’ ability to express the intimate and sensitive effects of change in massive sizes and organic movements. Using obscured contours and vivid color combinations, Kimes reminds us of nature’s delicate balance between creation and destruction.
Brazilian Contemporary Printmakers
Exhibition Dates: March 7, 2008 – April 25, 2008
Brazilian Contemporary Printmakers features a selection of print art representative of more than 30 artists from Brazil. The selected works demonstrate a range of creativity and style that encompass Brazil’s vibrant arts scene. The exhibit was developed and curated by Eduardo Benes, director of Galeria Gravura Brasileira, a leading modern and contemporary print gallery founded in São Paolo in 1988.
Brazilian Contemporary Printmakers was organized by International Arts and Artists, Washington, DC with the collaboration of Eduardo Benes, director of Galeria Gravura Brasileira, São Paolo, Brazil.
WAY, SHAPE, AND FORM: Small Abstract Paintings
by Bill Schmidt
Exhibition Dates: January 4, 2008 – February 22, 2008
Way, Shape, and Form: Small Abstract Paintings, an exhibition by Bill Schmidt, featured a selection of paintings in gouache embellished with colored pencil and water-soluble crayon. The selected works displayed Schmidt’s signature miniature, geometric paintings ranging in size from 4x4” to 7x5”. By placing bold and intricate designs on small-scale works, Schmidt's work creates an environment in which the viewer and art can intimately co-exist. In this environment, the two-dimensional, abstract shapes reference illusions of space and form.
Tools As Art, Two: Selections From The Hechinger Collection
Exhibition Dates: January 4, 2008 – February 22, 2008
Tools As Art, Two: Selections From The Hechinger Collection, was Hillyer Art Space’s second exhibition of the collection inherited from Washington collector and hardware pioneer, John Hechinger. The collection of approximately 400 celebrates the ubiquity of tools in our lives with art that magically transforms utilitarian objects into fanciful works of beauty, surprise and wit. The unique collection of 20th century art represents the theme of tools and hardware while maintaining a paradox between the autonomous, mass-produced tool and a unique expression of an artist’s imagination. The exhibition featured some highlights of the exceptional collection.