Vision Quest Exhibition At Mocada Musuem - Until 31.05.15

Curated by Isissa Komada-John

Vision Quest is a collection of whimsical, visual tales of powerful female protagonists on earthly and otherworldly adventures. Artists Amaryllis DeJesus Moleski and Sheena Rose use works on paper, hand-drawn animations and mixed-media works to recount their experiences and create new stories of voyages through time and space. Existing at the crux of the playful and the political, the artists have invented their own visual languages to document women’s stories in ways that diverge from dominant narratives of female experience. Each body of work exists as a travel narrative that blurs the lines between past, present and future, and invites viewers to faraway lands while exposing the magic that exists all around us.

In Amaryllis DeJesus Moleski’s drawings, imagined futuristic mythologies are born. Her characters transport spectators to other dimensions, and tell stories of a potential future where femininity and queerness are valued and exalted. Referencing Egyptian hieroglyphics, beauty products, comics, spiritual archetypes and outer space, Amaryllis creates visionary accounts of beings who exist at the intersection of goddess and human. By defying eurocentric art historical rules of proportion and scale, Amaryllis’ characters exist authentically, and invite onlookers to do the same. Sheena Rose uses hand-drawn lines to document her everyday experiences and perceptions of the world around her. Originally from Barbados, West Indies, Sheena is a world-traveller. She photographs her journeys across the globe and translates them into a unique language of lines, making each place she visits her own. Through line weight, texture, repetition and mixed-media interventions into her drawings, Sheena captures the energy of each landscape she illustrates. Viewers are given the opportunity to see the world through her eyes, from her particular physical perspective. Each drawing is an act of agency, personal reflection and connection to her viewers. Amaryllis and Sheena’s practices are simultaneously tools for personal processing and public calls for self-determination.

Vision Quest examines travel, whether cross-continental or to another galaxy, as a tool for escaping the confines of stereotypes, and an opportunity for self-exploration and definition. The artists’ use of widely accessible materials — including pens, markers, watercolor, and computer and construction paper — reflects their desires to connect with their viewers in a relatable way and bring them into the artistic process. From disparate angles of the supernatural and the everyday, Vision Quest highlights the importance of documentation, storytelling and record keeping from one’s own point of view. Vision Quest emphasizes the power of art to transport us from our current realities and inspires us to embark on quests of our own.

Images by Sheena Rose (left) and Amaryllis DeJesus Moleski (right).

HOURS
Wednesday 12pm to 7pm
Thursday 12pm to 8pm
Friday 12pm to 7pm
Saturday 12pm to 7pm
Sunday 12pm to 6pm

7 February 2015 at 8:00pm - 1 June 2015 at 3:00am

MoCADA Museum, 80 Hanson Place, New York, Brooklyn, NY 11217, United States

Price: see website

Contact: info@mocada.org