| In the East Gallery, Lily Glass and Mary Mocas, the two artists chosen for exhibition awards by 2021 Left Coast Annual juror Christine Koppes, then Curator and Director of Public Programs at the Institute of Contemporary Art San José, will present their works.
Lily Glass shares work in, First You are Mothered, seeking to explore the individual and collective value that we place on the work of caring. Gridded photographs alongside methodically crafted ceramic pieces echo the unceasing rhythms of care. The viewer is invited to witness the work that is done largely behind closed doors — either because it is impossible to measure or perhaps because in meeting the physical needs of another we are confronted with our own mortality and limitations —and given the opportunity to remember the care they have given and received. Lily Glass recently returned to the fine art world after a decade working in commercial photography. With a Bachelor of Arts in both Photography and Ceramics, her practice explores the deep spiritual connection between the feminine experience and the natural world. Her works have appeared in publications including "Where I Go", Mother Tongue, 2021, "Put Down Roots" All Good Things, 2021, "Gatherings" Hearth, 2014, and "The Perfect Match" Ceramics Monthly 2009. Her fine art prints are included in private collections across the United States.
For additional information: lilyglassphotography.com
The Space We Hold, couples sculptural forms and paintings by Mary Mocas. Collectively the works build a dialogue between body and landscape. Reflecting on a quote by Caelan Reeves TEDxYouth@JCP, that "For almost of our entire lives, women are surrounded by a pressure to take up as little space as possible, be that with our body or voice or ideas," Mocas highlights psychological territory and holds space for all of us to contemplate where and how we hold space. Her sculptures in the exhibition are physical stand-ins for the actual women who were asked to use their bodies to create the artworks. Made of medical grade foam impressed by the bodies of friends and fellow artists, the casts were then covered with collaged fragments of found paper, fabric, leather, paint and words/phrases. By challenging the way women are represented, the feminine body no longer becomes the object of a dominant fantasy; these sculptures become a memorial, extracting the impression of the body, and also pointing to the absence of the body that created the artwork. The mixed media paintings depicting abstracted landscapes represent out challenged environment. Alluding to sky and ground they articulate neither specifically. The paintings use a similar collage method as the sculptures, reframing disparate discarded objects and materials to create the sense of landscape. Mary Mocas received her BA from Marietta College and received her MFA from California College of the Arts. She has exhibited extensively in the San Francisco Bay Area. Her work is represented innumerous private collections and in the public collection of Visa International.
For more about the artist: marymocas.com
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