By Jaida Dent
Sitting in the heart of Park Slope, art enthusiasts gathered at the opening reception of the 20th Annual Small Works Show at the 440 Gallery. The exhibition features pieces no larger than 12 inches in dimension through a range of mediums like photography, collages, paintings, sculptures, and more.
The gallery, which will celebrate its 20th anniversary in January, hosts pieces from artists who hold a membership with the organization, but for the Small Works Show, the pieces were selected through a national open call. This year’s juror, also known as the curator, Pam Wong, sifted through over 1,300 submissions and narrowed it down to the lucky 81 artists featured in the show.
“It was nice for me because I typically work in Gowanus and Park Slope, northwest Brooklyn. So it introduced me to a lot of new artists, which was really exciting to me […] I just really tried to get as much as possible just to have a little bit of something for everyone,” said Wong.
With each piece being limited to a certain size, the final works in the exhibit showcased each artist’s creativity and skill when it comes to small canvases. For Rich Garr, he transformed a hexagon-shaped wood panel found on a Brooklyn sidewalk into a beautiful collage that spreads the message of disability awareness.
“I was contemplating these six kinds of symbolic colors that are associated with different kinds of disabilities, and when I saw that I had a six-sided small piece of wood, I thought this is going to be my ‘Disability Pride Flag Redux,’” said Garr.
Garr’s piece pulls inspiration from his time working with organizations in Cleveland to help disabled youth. The “Disability Pride Redux” creates a new way of understanding both the piece and different forms of disabilities as the viewer is able to pay attention to each of the six colors depending on which side you look at the piece from.
Many artists find the themes of their work within the natural world and replicate them in their pieces. Tiziana Mazziotto’s “Water Towers with Pink Building” recreates the urban city she operates within.
“Mostly I go around taking pictures of things that catch my eye and then I go into my studio and either I really try to replicate it as close as possible or it just takes something on its own and becomes something else,” said Mazziotto.
Ella Hepner’s painting “Sleeper in Havana” represents her time in Cuba, while also capturing the quiet moments of being in your own small space.
“I am very inspired by things around me, things in my life–living in New York or when I used to live in Havana. I’m very inspired by living in small spaces, living up against other people,” said Hepner.
Beyond paintings and collages, photography is prominent in the exhibit, and artists like Nicholas Bailey and Ksenia Winnicki showcase the power of capturing art in the moment through photographs. Bailey captures the joy of summer in Bedstuy through his piece, “Brooklyn Summers.” While the photo captures the present, it also serves as a time capsule for the future, as many will look back on the experiences present in the piece.
“Photography is very special because, although you’re creating your own, you’re capturing something that’s already going on. To be able to kind of take something that’s already going on and make it art, it’s special to me,” said Bailey.
Winnicki’s photo, “Falling Village” captures a community of fishing shacks in the Hudson, where people were forced to leave with their things still inside.
“I really love it because I’m fascinated and saddened at the same time by these fishing shacks because they have a history, but they’re literally falling apart, even though there’s a lot going on. But there’s still history and stuff inside them,” said Winnicki.
The reception was filled with community as artists gathered to view each other’s work on display. Feelings of pride and honor radiated through all 81 artists as their works were chosen to be a part of this exhibition.
“There’s a lot of failure associated with art making, and it’s not a lucrative career. When you have a success like an art piece being picked for a show out of many other pieces, that’s saying to that artist that they’re doing something right,” said Garr.
While the show emphasized “small works,” the recognition these artists felt were larger than life. The creativity displayed on the walls of the gallery showed the power of storytelling that art can hold.
“I just want people to really appreciate local arts, no matter where they are, whether they’re in Brooklyn, elsewhere in the country, other parts of New York City or New York State,” said Wong. “Just really appreciate and support local artists because they work very hard. Creativity is so important for expression, free expression, and communication.”
The 20th Annual Small Works Show will be on display until Dec. 20 at 440 Gallery. The pieces will also be up for sale at the Small Shop event on Nov. 29.