SELECTS 2018 is the twelfth annual summer member artist exhibition at Westport Arts Center. The exhibition is on view June 22 – August 24, 2018.
The exhibition is juried by Joe Amrhein and Susan Swenson of Pierogi Gallery (NYC), arguably known as one of the most prominent established galleries dedicated to emerging artists. Joe Amrhein is the co-owner/director of Pierogi Gallery (NYC) and The Boiler (Williamsburg, Brooklyn) and Susan Swenson is co-owner of Pierogi Gallery and co-founder and editor of Pierogi Press.
Of their selections, the jurors stated, “Among the diverse works of the ten artists selected emerged two groups: one of a personal subjective nature and another directed towards intuitive abstraction. This involved a more eclectic and inclusive approach to our curation. We want to thank the artists and everyone involved in putting this exhibition together.”
The jurors reviewed more than100 entries and selected the following ten artists for inclusion in SELECTS 2018:
- Bethany Brooke
- Alexandria Donovan
- Camille Eskell
- Jana Ireijo
- Susan Lloyd
- Mary Tooley Parker
- Margaret Roleke
- Susan Sharp
- Angela Strassheim
- Charlotte Strick
The exhibition includes a wide diversity of themes and mediums including photography, painting, digital media, video, mixed media, ink and textile.
Joe Amrhein is the founder and co-owner / director of Pierogi Gallery (NYC) and The Boiler (Williamsburg, Brooklyn) and is an active visual artist as well. Known for its inventive program, Pierogi was launched in 1994. Pierogi exhibits the work of contemporary emerging and mid-career artists in a wide variety of media; from drawing and painting, to sculpture, installation, photography, and video. Their artists range from recent graduates having their first exhibitions, to veterans who have been included in important exhibitions such as the Venice Biennale, Site Santa Fe, and the Whitney Biennial. Pierogi has monthly solo shows, participates in art fairs such as the Armory Show and Frieze (NYC), among others and is also known for its Flat Files that house original works by 800+ artists. As an artist, Amrhein is a painter who works primarily with text on a variety of media, including translucent vellum and glass. He has exhibited widely in the US and Europe and lives in Brooklyn, New York.
Susan Swenson holds an MFA from the Bennington Writing Seminars (Bennington, VT) and an MA from the New School for Social Research Graduate Studies (NY, NY). Her poetry and writing have appeared in AGNI, The Brooklyn Rail, Cabinet Magazine, and elsewhere and her artist interviews have appeared in numerous exhibition catalogues. She is the co-founder and editor of Pierogi Press. She is co-owner of Pierogi with her husband, Joe Amrhein, and currently lives in Brooklyn, NY.
“It is always an interesting challenge to curate a show. We take this very seriously and in selecting the work we always want to tip our hat to the artists who were not selected. Among the diverse works of the ten artists selected emerged two groups: one of a personal subjective nature and another directed towards intuitive abstraction. This involved a more eclectic and inclusive approach to our curation. We want to thank the artists and everyone involved in putting this exhibition together.”
-Susan Swenson & Joe Amrhein