JULIA ZANES
JULIA ZANES OPENING RECEPTION: SATURDAY APRIL 6TH, 1-3pm · C.X. Silver Gallery, 814 Western Avenue, Brattleboro.
“The work here is a selection from several bodies of work made since 2020.
“The small ones I called Household Objects. They were an offshoot of a large body of work I made around 2016 called ‘The Good Eye. I was interested in apotropaic art, and I was trying to make a shift from the image to the object. I like thinking of paintings as magical objects with a specific, household purpose - that of keeping evil at bay. It struck me as a funny, medieval way of looking at things. I have always liked Grimm’s Fairy Tales, and the fact that the stories were called ‘Household Tales’ when first published was appealing to me. Although I used gold in my paintings (often a component of fairy tales) I don't want to think of them as being precious, but rather as ordinary objects we keep around the house, for a purpose beyond decoration. Of course I don’t believe in the magical powers of paintings, but on some level know it to be true.
“The works on paper and the medium sized abstract paintings are the most recent. Each is a fraction of a larger body of work..”
HOUSEHOLD OBJECTS
2022-2024 · 8x8” · oil & gold leaf on board
2022-2024 · 20.5 x 20.5" · oil & acrylic on board
2022-2024 · 8 x 6" · oil & acrylic on board
2022-2024 · 22 x 19" (left 2), 19 x 19” and 15 x 15” (rightmost)· oil & acrylic on board
“The largest painting here, the more narrative ones, I started when covid started. I gave myself an assignment to include imagery from The Book of Revelation, and also from American schoolgirl embroideries(samplers). I have always loved the Book of Revelation and it seemed that the “End Times” spirit was in the ether for a few months there. I was way over my head in thinking that I was about to start painting the Whore of Babylon or anything like that, but I did include a few little fiery references. I like the symmetry and the imagery in the embroideries: trees, flowers, houses, biblical references, and always the alphabet. I love that they were made by young girls.“
Pieces on Childhood Handkerchiefs. · 2022-2024 · 15x15”
Works on Paper. · 2022-2024 · 32x22”
Julia Zanes graduated from The School of the Art institute of Chicago with a degree in filmmaking. She has worked as a practicing artist for many years and has shown in many New England galleries and small museums. Her work is in a number of private and corporate collections and has been published by Pomegranate Publications. This body of work represents work done since the pandemic, as well as a few earlier pieces.