Whether displayed against the backdrop of the stark realities of our present-day or in a fantastical, surreal abstraction, hope, resilience, and strength are feelings and states of being that are predominant themes in exhibitions this season. Art lovers will have ample choices to stimulate their optical nerves; well-known institutions have invigorating cultural presentations, while artist-run spaces consider the dreaminess and absurdities of every day. There is also a continued emphasis on exhibits that focus on championing dialogues relating to social and civil justice issues, further continuing conversations and discourse that have been prominently unfolding for the last two years. Bold, vibrant, and electrical colors featured throughout are a welcome reprieve from the onslaught of gray the Pacific Northwest endures the hibernal wintertime. It is a premonition and reminder that spring is anxiously around the corner with its effervescent energy.
William Matheson, Dissipatio
William Matheson’s new series of paintings at Nationale are imbued with isolation and collective unease. Shadowy figures and vignettes of daily life are displayed in capricious colorways, further expanding on the tensions relating to time, space, and creative practice. Although the semi-monochromatic paintings and ink drawings on display may not outwardly appear optimistic, hope is palpable throughout. Matheson’s creative practice attentively examines the dualistic nature that is severely apparent in the present day.
Nationale, 15 SE 22nd, February 18–March 27
Possessions, Possessions by Olivia Faith Harwood
Fuller Rosen continues to be at the forefront of showing emerging artists—regionally, nationally, and internationally. The 2022 programming begins with a solo exhibition of paintings by recent PNCA graduate Olivia Faith Harwood. Harwood’s work reflects identity, adolescence, and surroundings in surrealist still lifes and self-portraits. Harwood’s personal belongings are featured throughout, repeating motifs like spiderwebs, snakes, and boardgames become symbolic in Harwood’s work, which takes inspiration from wallpaper, clown outfits, and nostalgic album covers.
In April, Dana Robinson, a multimedia artist based in Brooklyn, New York, works with vintage materials and found images, will show new and recent work highlighting Black womanhood and the dynamics of memory, identity, and ownership. Robinson’s work abstracts commercial-based images with humor; their collection of Ebony magazines from the 1970s-1980s serves as a reference point for collages and painted works on silk, creating contemporary visions of liberation and joy.
Fuller Rosen, 1928 NW Lovejoy, January 29-March 13 and April 2-May 8