SOLO EXHIBIT: BUENA VISTA
SOME SPACE GALLERY
SHOWING MAY 4 - 29, 2010
RECEPTION - THURSDAY, MAY 6 from 6-9 PM
"In Buena Vista, Anna Wetzel’s exploration of homeland, identity crafting and displacement extends to the world of the ornamental cacti that mark many domestic urban tableaux. By pairing dreamlike botanical motifs with desert landscapes that recall postcards and mid-century film imagery, she evokes the nostalgia a potted cactus might fabricate for itself while sitting captive in an apartment dwelling. After considering these imagined memories, the viewer is ultimately invited to stand before the landscapes and discover a more personal threshold for solitude, escapism, and the contemplation of constructed history and longings."
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RECEIVED A SHOUT OUT FOR BUENA VISTA IN REDEFINE MAGAZINE
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SOME SPACE GALLERY
SHOWING MAY 4 - 29, 2010
RECEPTION - THURSDAY, MAY 6 from 6-9 PM
"In Buena Vista, Anna Wetzel’s exploration of homeland, identity crafting and displacement extends to the world of the ornamental cacti that mark many domestic urban tableaux. By pairing dreamlike botanical motifs with desert landscapes that recall postcards and mid-century film imagery, she evokes the nostalgia a potted cactus might fabricate for itself while sitting captive in an apartment dwelling. After considering these imagined memories, the viewer is ultimately invited to stand before the landscapes and discover a more personal threshold for solitude, escapism, and the contemplation of constructed history and longings."
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RECEIVED A SHOUT OUT FOR BUENA VISTA IN REDEFINE MAGAZINE
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RECOMMENDED IN DAILYCANDY'S WEEKEND GUIDE!
LINK
"SEE ANNA WETZEL'S MASTER: HAUNTING AND GRACEFUL SELF-PORTRAITS OF THE KANSAS CITY-BORN ARTIST AS AN ANIMAL TOTEM...
TAKE A GAWK ON THE WILD SIDE."
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"SEE ANNA WETZEL'S MASTER: HAUNTING AND GRACEFUL SELF-PORTRAITS OF THE KANSAS CITY-BORN ARTIST AS AN ANIMAL TOTEM...
TAKE A GAWK ON THE WILD SIDE."
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NOVEMBER 2009: "MASTER"
NEW DRAWINGS BY ANNA WETZEL
20TWENTY /// 5208 BALLARD AVE NW /// SEATTLE, WA
OPENING SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 14 7:00--9:00 PM
“Those who thus confront their nahual, outside themselves, are invincible in war and in love ... they own all the riches they desire, they make the snakes respect them, do not succumb to small pox, and if they die it is said their bones are made of firestone.”
--The Authors of Popol Vuh
“There is no easy way to command all the wild things jostling inside.”
--David Brooks, “Where The Wild Things Are,” The New York Times
THROUGH A NEW SERIES OF SELF PORTRAITS, ANNA WETZEL CONSTRUCTS AN IDENTITY OF POWER BASED ON DOMESTICATION OF THE SUPERNATURAL ANIMALS IN OUR MIDST. WHEN COAXED INTO SUBMISSION, THESE WILD CREATURES BECOME FANCIFUL PETS AND OBJECTS FOR PERSONAL ADORNMENT, PARADED TRIUMPHANTLY BY THEIR BEARER AS A PICTURE OF COMPANIONSHIP TURNED INTO RISKY CAPTIVITY.
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20TWENTY /// 5208 BALLARD AVE NW /// SEATTLE, WA
OPENING SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 14 7:00--9:00 PM
“Those who thus confront their nahual, outside themselves, are invincible in war and in love ... they own all the riches they desire, they make the snakes respect them, do not succumb to small pox, and if they die it is said their bones are made of firestone.”
--The Authors of Popol Vuh
“There is no easy way to command all the wild things jostling inside.”
--David Brooks, “Where The Wild Things Are,” The New York Times
THROUGH A NEW SERIES OF SELF PORTRAITS, ANNA WETZEL CONSTRUCTS AN IDENTITY OF POWER BASED ON DOMESTICATION OF THE SUPERNATURAL ANIMALS IN OUR MIDST. WHEN COAXED INTO SUBMISSION, THESE WILD CREATURES BECOME FANCIFUL PETS AND OBJECTS FOR PERSONAL ADORNMENT, PARADED TRIUMPHANTLY BY THEIR BEARER AS A PICTURE OF COMPANIONSHIP TURNED INTO RISKY CAPTIVITY.
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APRIL 2009: 'BETTERING THE WORLD THROUGH ART' EXHIBIT
W.A.R.N. ANTI-TRAFFICKING ART BENEFIT
108 OCCIDENTAL GALLERY ///// PIONEER SQUARE, SEATTLE
APRIL 3 & 4, 2009 ///// 6 - 10 PM
"A NIGHT OF WINE, CHOCOLATE, AND FINE ART. ALL PROCEEDS BENEFIT THE WASHINGTON ANTI-TRAFFICKING RESPONSE NETWORK (WARN)."
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108 OCCIDENTAL GALLERY ///// PIONEER SQUARE, SEATTLE
APRIL 3 & 4, 2009 ///// 6 - 10 PM
"A NIGHT OF WINE, CHOCOLATE, AND FINE ART. ALL PROCEEDS BENEFIT THE WASHINGTON ANTI-TRAFFICKING RESPONSE NETWORK (WARN)."
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DECEMBER 2008: GOMA IN PERSPECTIVE
THROUGH JANUARY 31 2009 AT Q CAFE IN SEATTLE
'GOMA IN PERSPECTIVE' IS AN EXPLORATION INTP PORTRAYALS OF A REGION BATTLING POVERTY AND WAR THROUGH FOUR DIFFERENT VISUAL FILTERS. RATHER THAN CLASSIFY EACH PERCEPTION'S COMPARATIVE AUTHENTICITY, THE EXHIBIT ATTEMPTS TO REVEAL HOW THE SUBJECTIVITY OF IMAGES CAN COMPLETELY ALTER OUR UNDERSTANDING OF A PLACE, PEOPLE, OR SITUATION.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS:
CONGOLESE WOMEN: NEEMA, LUCY, ZAINA
The women who took these portraits were patients at the HEAL Africa hospital in Goma receiving treatment and counseling for rape and childbirth related traumas. The women have spent their entire life in eastern DR Congo which has been ravaged by war since 1994.
HARPER MCCONNELL
Harper spent two years in Goma working directly with the women at the hospital. She started Healing Arts, a vocational training and micro-enterprise program for women and small businesses in Goma.
ANNA WETZEL
Anna is a Seattle-based artist whose drawings reflect a perception of Goma that was formed over two years through letters and photos emailed by her best friend, Harper. Anna has never traveled to Africa.
KITRA CAHANA
Kitra is a photojournalist working for international award-winning, Colors Magazine. She traveled to DR Congo on behalf of United Colors of Benetton to document and elicit Congolese women’s voices and experiences. Kitra also works regularly for the New York Times.
HEALING ARTS | www.healingartsafrica.com
HEAL AFRICA | www.healafrica.org
Q CAFE | www.qcafe.org
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'GOMA IN PERSPECTIVE' IS AN EXPLORATION INTP PORTRAYALS OF A REGION BATTLING POVERTY AND WAR THROUGH FOUR DIFFERENT VISUAL FILTERS. RATHER THAN CLASSIFY EACH PERCEPTION'S COMPARATIVE AUTHENTICITY, THE EXHIBIT ATTEMPTS TO REVEAL HOW THE SUBJECTIVITY OF IMAGES CAN COMPLETELY ALTER OUR UNDERSTANDING OF A PLACE, PEOPLE, OR SITUATION.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS:
CONGOLESE WOMEN: NEEMA, LUCY, ZAINA
The women who took these portraits were patients at the HEAL Africa hospital in Goma receiving treatment and counseling for rape and childbirth related traumas. The women have spent their entire life in eastern DR Congo which has been ravaged by war since 1994.
HARPER MCCONNELL
Harper spent two years in Goma working directly with the women at the hospital. She started Healing Arts, a vocational training and micro-enterprise program for women and small businesses in Goma.
ANNA WETZEL
Anna is a Seattle-based artist whose drawings reflect a perception of Goma that was formed over two years through letters and photos emailed by her best friend, Harper. Anna has never traveled to Africa.
KITRA CAHANA
Kitra is a photojournalist working for international award-winning, Colors Magazine. She traveled to DR Congo on behalf of United Colors of Benetton to document and elicit Congolese women’s voices and experiences. Kitra also works regularly for the New York Times.
HEALING ARTS | www.healingartsafrica.com
HEAL AFRICA | www.healafrica.org
Q CAFE | www.qcafe.org
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AUGUST - SEPTEMBER 2008 : OAX - I - FORNIA EXHIBIT
CUMULATIVE EXHIBIT OF PROCESS AND PIECES
14 CCA STUDENTS + 5 OAXACAN ARTISANS + 3 MEXICAN STUDENTS
CASA DE LA CIUDAD, PORFIRIO DIAZ #115 CENTRO, OAXACA, MEXICO
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14 CCA STUDENTS + 5 OAXACAN ARTISANS + 3 MEXICAN STUDENTS
CASA DE LA CIUDAD, PORFIRIO DIAZ #115 CENTRO, OAXACA, MEXICO
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JULY 2008 : O A X - I - F O R N I A
SO VERY FORTUNATE TO BE A PART OF CCA'S
EXPERIMENTAL STUDIO COURSE IN OAXACA, MEXICO
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EXPERIMENTAL STUDIO COURSE IN OAXACA, MEXICO
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A B O U T F O L K S & L L A M A S
ORIGINALLY BORN FROM AN EXERCISE IN AUTOMATISM, THESE DRAWINGS EVOLVED INTO A PORTRAITURE PROJECT THAT'S STILL OF INTEREST TO ME A COUPLE YEARS AFTER ITS INCEPTION. VISUALLY INSPIRED BY SNAPSHOTS OF FAMILY GATHERINGS THAT PREDATED MY OWN BIRTH, I'VE OVER TIME ASSEMBLED A LINEAGE OF CHARACTERS (APPROX. 50) WITH SMUDGED-YET-DEBONAIR ENSEMBLES, SOFTLY OBSCURED EYES, THE OCCASIONAL BASKETBALL, AND A REMARKABLY LOW-KEY RANGE OF EMOTIONS. THIS COLLECTIVE ALOOFNESS IS ALL THE MORE REMARKABLE WHEN YOU CONSIDER THAT THEY ARE EACH SUPPORTING A HEADDRESS COMPOSED OF SEEMINGLY GRAVITY-DEFYING LIVESTOCK.
TO ME, THESE WAXING AND WANING WHITE FLUFFY PARASITES
END UP FORMING A REFERENCE TO THE CONCEPT OF A ZOOMORPHIZED BURDEN, MADE CLASSIC BY ENGLISH POET SAMUEL TAYLOR COLERIDGE. THE MARINER'S SHOULDERING OF A CUMBERSOME ALBATROSS (DIRECTLY, THE RESULT OF AN INDIVIDUAL'S MISGUIDED ACTIONS; INDIRECTLY, THE RESULT OF FAR GREATER SYSTEMS AT WORK) IS ECHOED BY MY PENCIL ON DRY LAND AND WITH A PAN-AMERICAN MOTIF. THE LLAMA HAS A GHOSTLY AND OFTEN JUST RIDICULOUS RELATIONSHIP WITH ITS BEARER -- CREATING IN EACH PORTRAIT A PERPETUALLY CONFUSING SENSE OF PRESSURE ON THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE. THESE ARE EMBLEMS OF AN UNCLEAR BURDEN.
-- A W 2 0 0 8
