| Upwards: A close-up of a clean white gallery wall. Cropped awkwardly in the bottom of the grainy photo, a gold, ornate antique frame casts overlapping shadows in blue, grey, and deep purple. The frame radiates warmth, while multiple jagged silhouettes shift and dance on the wall just above. |
| Above you: Taken from under an highway overpass, a photo of a blank billboards towering over yellow, red, and beige low-rise buildings in NYC. The large empty white sign blocks a lightly clouded crisp blue sky. |
| Below us: A crowded ride on the R train in NYC is shown in a photo of colorful, blurred reflections in the subway car windows. Part of a hand holding a phone appears in the lower right corner, while glimpses of subway ads and New York commuters sprinkle the chaotic composition of the abstracted image. |
When we are neither here nor there, we are in the ambiguity of liminal space - a window between presence and absence, past and future, visible and unseen, call and response.
Liminal Beings is a virtual exhibition created by participants in the Socially Distant Artist Residency program and is an extension of work in which introspection, loneliness, solitude, and social (dis)connection experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic are investigated by the Artists in Residence. Critical to the exhibition is presenting the artwork accessibly, as an integral part of both the exhibit’s curatorial foundation and the artwork itself.
| With a background of rhythmic chimes a gentle voice reads the Liminal Beings curatorial statement, which is featured above. |
| Straight ahead: A ride on the D train in NYC expressed in a photograph of overlapping, abstracted reflections and voyeuristic glimpses of tired New York commuters. A hazy mixture of muted blues, greys, and oranges creates a calm image of an otherwise chaotic subway. On the left side of the photo a dark-haired, East Asian-presenting woman bundled in winter clothing sleeps with her purse on her lap. Reflected in the metal wall on the right, a white-presenting man in similar clothing also sits quietly with his eyes closed. |
| Glancing to the right: A NYC subway ride told through a photograph of overlapping, abstracted window reflections and fractured glimpses of tired commuters. A hazy mixture of warm yellows, greys, and oranges with a hint of bright red creates an energetic, painterly composition. |
Socially Distant Art
Socially Distant Artists-in-Residence explore loneliness, social (dis)connection, solitude, and community bonds, while expanding their own knowledge of digital accessibility practices. Our inaugural cohort is investigating these themes and modes of art-making within the unique circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a collaborative, interdisciplinary program, we use universal design principles to create a more accessible Art world.
