Finding Connections: Two Collections in One Gallery Space

When Sandy Zane founded form & concept in 2016, the program diversified Zane Bennett Contemporary Art’s collection of prints by celebrating artists working in a myriad of mediums at the intersection of art, craft, and design. As we enter the seventh year of supporting both missions, the boundaries between the two have started to fade, introducing connections among the artists shown.

For instance, printmakers Matt Magee and Jon Greene find commonality in their exploration of repetition, architecture, and flattened forms in their geometric abstractions. Magee’s practice extends to unique sculptures and collages that repeat the shapes, colors, and textures of recycled materials. C Alex Clark, featured in the form & concept collection, also re-imagines found objects, but from a photographic perspective. Their new body of work, Spectral Archetypes, combines the magic of holograms with the vintage charm of antique photographs, while also shining a light on long-established photographic techniques, such as tintypes and daguerreotypes.

Staging self-portraits that expose the limited visions and questionable missions of Orientalist photography studios in the 19th and 20th centuries, Sama Alshaibi delved into the antique techniques of albumen, gumoil, and photogravure with her series Carry Over. The images required layers of craft to make, including curating sets, designing costumes, and fabricating over-sized props. The editions of photogravure juxtapose textures with a delicately embossed border. Following suit, artists from form & concept's recent Arrivals exhibition explore cultural identities and play with texture in a multitude of mediums. Amie LeGette wields Dupont dye and silk to create dreamy landscapes that capture the significance of one's homeland and vibrate with unique textural plains. While, Jennifer Ling Datchuk juxtaposes glossy porcelain with a cascade of human hair in exploring her Chinese-American heritage.