Two mixed media pieces were accepted into a juried New Mexico Art League show. The show, “Small Works,” is a festive and fun annual exhibit of works by New Mexico artists of all subject matter and mediums, all in an excellent small package. Perfect for gift-giving for the holidays! The show's opening will be on December 5 and run until January 11, 2025. The opening reception will be held on December 14 from 4 - 6 PM. The exhibition is open to the public, Tuesday through Saturday, 10 AM – 4 PM. The New Mexico Art League Gallery is at 3409 Juan Tabo Boulevard NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico. If you can’t make the show in person, the show is also online HERE.

Fourteenfifteen Gallery

June 14 -July 5, 2024

Opening Reception: Friday, June 14, 6 - 10 pm

Of all the unpleasant aspects of modern life: the international atrocities, the climate change fallout, the post-information age, the irreality wars of American politics, the late-Capitalism scrounging for basic subsistence and shelter… is it easy to get lost in the enumeration of problems at hand. First and foremost is the constant apprehension that you are being swept along in a direction that is in no way any of your choosing.

This is not the first time the world has had to contend with this feeling. Our predecessors had rites and ceremonies which they used to fight this sensation of powerlessness. These rituals were there to help them generate -  by word, by gesture, by dance, by method of dress, by song, by marking - a life that they could peacefully reside within, or at minimum one not overtly hostile towards them.

Some of these rituals we grew up with, either because they are practiced in our own families or because we have lived alongside others who use them. There is a beauty and art in them and in their utilization. They are tools of imaginative force and energy and there is method and craft in their wielding that is clearly felt but difficult to pinpoint.

And for many of us, what was passed down is still functional and the premise of any need of alteration of the rituals of the past would be abhorrent. But looking at the world in its present state, where we exist with baseline underlying anxieties at all times, it’s hard not to wonder if preliminary trials of new methods might not be due. As TS Elliot said, “Last year’s words belong to last year’s language, and next year’s words await another voice.”

Belen, NM is the place to be for this eclectic group of talented artists.