I am so grateful to be included in the Fall 2021 Issue III of All She Makes arts and culture magazine. This is a wonderful publication to support and it has given important exposure to many female identified artists. Check out https://www.allshemakes.org/ to learn more! I have included the article here if you would like to check it out!
I am so thrilled to be participating in “Weave, Bundle, Cut, and Layer: Artists with Material Instincts” at Root Division in San Francisco, curated by @lisa_mccutcheon The show is up from November 5th – November 30th. Gallery hours are by appointment.
From the press release: “This dynamic group exhibition features 21 artists who share the ability to transform non-traditional materials into a personal visual language — a language that illuminates the beauty and reflection to be found in the mundane. Fabric, rubber, screening, wood, shards of paper, and discarded plastic are just a few of the materials these artists gather, manipulate, and resurrect.”
Hoping you can join me and view the work of these amazing artists. My piece “Secret Garden 2” is featured in the exhibition and I can’t wait to share it with you. 😀
Curious about my studio practice? 😀 Join me at Artspan’s upcoming Art Salon on Thursday, November 11 from 6:30pm-8:00pm online via Zoom to learn more about new available work and upcoming exhibitions! PLUS, hear from several other artists exhibiting with me at ArtSpan’s SFOS Showcase Exhibition currently on-view at the South of Market Cultural Center in San Francisco.
RSVP via the Salon 3 link here: https://bit.ly/SFOSsalon3
The SFOS Showcase Exhibition presents the work of over 200 artists responsible for our region’s unique artistic landscape that attracts admirers from all over the world. Visit the show in-person:
📍 SOMArts Cultural Center, 934 Brannan Street, SF
Thursday-Friday 3–5PM & 5:30–7:30PM
Saturday-Sunday 12–2PM & 2:30–5PM
I’m very honored to be named as a “Top 5” selection by Justin Hoover, Executive Director of the Chinese Historical Society of America, for my work “Icarus 4” at the #ArtSpanSF 2021 AMPLIFY show this year! 
This exhibition is the culmination of a wonderful month of the annual San Francisco Open Studios. Thank you, @ArtSpan, for the opportunity!
Please check out the full exhibition at the SFOS Showcase Exhibition during the Opening Weekend this Friday 3:00pm–5:00pm & 5:30pm–7:30pm, Saturday-Sunday 12:00pm–2:00pm & 2:30pm–5:00pm. Visit https://www.artspan.org/sfos/sfos-exhibition for additional information and visiting hours.
I am so happy to share that my work “Arachne 1” was featured in the Surface Design Association Fall 2021 Exhibition in Print publication “Confrontation to Catharsis.” In this article featured below, I talk about what inspired “Arachne 1” and my overall artistic process.
If you would like to learn more about the Surface Design Association, an international membership of artists that work with innovative approaches to fiber and materials, visit: https://www.surfacedesign.org/journal/about-the-journal/ They offer exhibition opportunities to artists as well as a beautiful quarterly print publication which I am so honored to participate in!
I am thrilled to share that my work was reviewed in DART International Magazine by D. Dominick Lombardi as part of the group online exhibition “BOUNTY” through Rhombus Space. “BOUNTY” will be available to view on the Rhombus site through November 30, 2021. Below are a few excerpts and links from the review along with a screenshot of my work included in the exhibition. The show featured 8 wonderful artists and I feel so honored to have been a part of this wonderful project curated by Katerina Lanfranco. Special thanks to fellow artist Etty Yaniv for inviting me to participate!
Excerpt from the article: “Holly Wong’s beautiful mixed media works immediately brought to mind Frank Stella’s prints from the early 1990’s that were inspired by the cigar smoke rings he blew, captured, computerized, then turned into 3D renderings. In both instances, with Wong and Stella’s compositions, there is this seemingly endless level of movement and gesture that is clearly amplified by attention-grabbing color and graceful line.”
You can read the full article here.
To view the online BOUNTY exhibition, you can visit the Rhombus Space exhibition site here
I will be participating in three art benefit auctions for wonderful causes this month. It feels really good to take action on my values by donating artwork to support organizations I believe in. Below are the featured works and details. I hope you can check out the websites and bid on my work or that of the many other artists who have work on offer!
Art for AIDS Auction
I have been selected as a featured artist at the 25th Annual Art for AIDS auction benefiting the UCSF Alliance Health Project! Register to bid on my work along with 200 other artists. Art for AIDS benefits marginalized people living with chronic mental illness, HIV, and substance use disorders.
Shown blow is “Eos II” which is an assemblage of acrylic on paper that has been hand cut and mounted to bristol board. It is framed in white wood with plexi glazing and is 21″x26″.
Starting bid is $425 and bidding begins on October 11th!
https://ucsfaids2021.ggo.bid/bidding/package/13485798
I am excited to participate in the benefit exhibition “Hope and Possibility” through Bridgette Mayer Gallery. 20% of all proceeds from artwork sales will go directly to Tools for Schools and EducationWorks and will be used to purchase school supplies and provide academic support, career readiness, and enrichment programming for students of all ages in Philadelphia. Shown below is “Pegasus,” which is a collage of ink drawing, colored pencil, graphite on paper, transparencies and ink on yupo, mounted on cradled wood panel. Size is 24″ x 24″.
Purchase price is $1,000! https://bridgette-mayer-gallery.myshopify.com/collections/2021-benefit-24-x-24-panels/products/holly-wong-pegasus
I am thrilled to participate in the annual Root Division Art Auction through the sponsorship of my gallery SLATE Contemporary. Root Division is a San Francisco-based arts non profit exhibition space that provides studio space to emerging artists and free or low cost art classes to children and the community at large. It’s a rare treasure here in San Francisco very worthy of your support!
Shown here is “Juliet of the Spirits VI” which made of gouache, graphite, and candle smoke on paper with hand-cut drafting film, framed to 19×16 in maple wood. This year, the auction is a hybrid event with an in-person celebration the evening of October 21st, as well as online bidding for those who prefer to participate virtually that night.
Starting bid is $450 (Lot 36)
https://cbo.io/bidapp/index.php?slug=rootdivision
I am excited to invite you to my virtual Open Studio on Wednesday, September 29th between 4:00pm – 8:00pm PDT!! As a part of the San Francisco Bay Area-wide ArtSpan event, I will be sharing my latest work and techniques with visitors through a free online platform called Booth Central. It works similar to a Zoom call but allows for greater functionality and interaction with artists.
Included below are pictures of some of my latest work that I will be discussing. I look forward to questions, lively discussion and a wonderful evening! In addition, I will be highlighting available works through my gallery SLATE Contemporary in Oakland, CA.
Click here to sign up for my Virtual Open Studio
Click here to view my available work through SLATE Contemporary
I am so excited to be participating in the Summer 2021 online group exhibition “Variance” through I Like Your Work Podcast. My featured work is “Icarus 1” which I have included below.
There are many wonderful artists in this show and you can view online at:
https://www.ilikeyourworkpodcast.com/variance
Variance
Finding something new is one of the best feelings as an artist.
The challenge was to pick only a few works from a fantastic group of submissions. But, of course, we go into these processes with our baggage and biases as individuals. I just completed my MFA journey, and I focused on a set of ideas for quite a while. From the first set of submissions, I knew my expectations were a false ceiling in judging this work. The work was so good! So I reset myself and opened my mind to what I was seeing. It was like taking off sunglasses and finally seeing the brilliance of the sky.
The artists were in their own conversations with form and color, gesture and material, pattern and scale. Art is a way that individuals filter their experiences, and within this work, I feel their voices manifested as visual documentation of feelings. There were moments of solace and moments of anxiety. There were the structures of life revealed both organic and linear. The color was used both as an overwhelming force and as subtlety.
The breadth of the artists’ work is the story of this exhibition—embracing the perspectives of all these other people who are experiencing this very same world in widely different ways. New ways of seeing the world are a gift that expands your understanding.
I appreciate the opportunity to review this work for Erika and the I Like Your Work community. It was challenging but super fun. I wish all my artists out there nothing but long, prosperous studio days.
JBarber
www.jbarberstudio.com
www.studionoizepodcast.com
