Outside the dominant narrative: the Artist Inc Alumni Showcase at Harvester Arts
The exhibition, which includes work by 37 artists who have participated in the professional development program, is a platform for diverse creative connections. It's on view through December 28.
The annual Artist Inc Alumni Showcase, on view at Harvester Arts from December 6-27, exhibits a breadth of mediums and a wealth of perspectives in the work of Kansas artists.
The opening reception for the showcase was a lively and warm affair. Throughout the evening, artists discussed collaborations and next projects. As a group exhibition with no theme outside of shared participation in the Artist Inc program, the show highlights a range of Kansan creatives across various stages of their careers.
Artist Inc (tagline: “investing in creativity”) is a training program led by the Mid-America Arts Alliance — a nonprofit serving six states, Including Kansas, that focuses on empowering communities through the arts. Designed to facilitate professional development, it emphasizes entrepreneurship skills for artists across disciplines.
Each year, Harvester Arts invites alumni from the Wichita program to participate in this showcase. This year's exhibition features works by 37 artists and the opening reception included a poetry reading and an excerpt from a soon-to-be-published novel.
The vibrancy of queer life holds a notable place in the exhibition. It was a privilege to hear Ramon Fonseca read his poem “Eusexua,” an emphatic celebration and defense of queer sexuality inspired by the FKA Twigs song of the same name. The poem’s first verse ends in an emotive “do you want privilege, or do you want freedom?,” that will stay with me long after the show closes.
Fonseca’s poem is an extension of his assemblage work and drawings placed just across from the artist Suspicious Glaze's “WIN BIG!!”. This mixed media painting is unmissable: it depicts a figure with bubblegum-pink nipples that extend erect several feet into the space. Suspicious Glaze paints the figure with fast strokes of blues, pinks, and yellows and hurried scrawls and it flickers with energy. Their tongue flicks toward the viewer and sharp eyes are alight with mischief.
Suspicious Glaze, “WIN BIG!!,” mixed media and found objects on canvas. The artist invites visitors to take a brown-bag prize if they succeed in a ring toss. Photos by Olivia D'Laine Schawe for the SHOUT.
The artist invites viewers to toss rings made of pool noodles and cardboard onto the “nipcicles,” carnival-style, and they are welcome to take a nearby mystery bag as their prize. In this work, the influence of drag culture is clear. The piece, for all its playfulness and gregariousness, leans heartily into challenging what a normal body can be, and how the body is an instrument of joy.
Taiomah Rutledge’s work hangs modestly on the far side of a gallery pillar. Rutledge follows in the tradition of ledger art, that is, using paper from antique ledgers and other antique documents as an artmaking surface. The pieces are made up of predominantly serigraphed images, but they Include painting and photographic processes as well.
From left, works by Taiomah Rutledge: “Land Back Punks,” serigraph on 1910 plat book paper, 19 by 14 inches; an installation view of three ledger art works. Photos by Olivia D'Laine Schawe for the SHOUT.
In one timely print, “Land Back Punks,” Rutledge depicts a deep blue toned Amazon delivery truck quilled with arrows and a graffitied “LAND BACK” proclamation atop an original 1910 yellow land parcel map — a plat book. It is a poignant symbol of overconsumption and instant gratification over the land that at one time was under the stewardship of Native people. With this work, Rutledge imposes an inversion of historical importance, centering Native perspectives and a quiet but firm demand to be seen in the contemporary.
The artists in the exhibition are not shy about leaning into their discomforts and frustrations. Sarah Chavez’s “Make Them Eat Cake” portrays a still life, top-down view of a table setting set in a square composition. The reality of the image begins to break as shadows conflict and perspectives clash. The central steak, laying stabbed next to a congealing runny egg, drips with purged red myoglobin, while the devil’s food cake oozes bright raspberry jam and drips dark chocolate. A bloody mary overflows into its saucer amidst half eaten strawberries where a single fly perches. The tablecloth on which it all sits is stained and smeared, the creamy white plates muddied by the rich secretions. The tantalizing feast is made repulsive by the nature of its consumption — a paradox of desire, disgust, and a visceral feeling. The painting boils with a head down contempt, a carnal desire for control and a lack thereof.
It is impossible not to notice the artist duo [A+B] piece “Bricolage Sonnet,” a diptych of two sets of grid-arranged rectangles sewn together. Each rectangular “patch” features a graphic, machine-cut shape or, occasionally, a geometric design superimposed upon a variety of dazzling colors or delicate patterns. The result is a quilt-like arrangement, with each side of the diptych the size of a twin-sized bed. (The artists currently have work on view in "Twinverse" at the Wichita Art Museum.)
As the viewer’s eye wanders about the crisp cacophony of graphics, one realizes that the “patches” have a pair on either side of the diptych; however, the harder one tries to find direct matches, the more difficult it is to identify them within each arrangement. Each half looks similar, but closer study rewards the viewer with a greater appreciation for their differences. The piece imparts a feeling of overhearing a babble of hieroglyphic conversation that is familiar and mesmerizing.
A major challenge of being a growing artist in a conservative place is experiencing a sense of isolation or feeling that your perspective as a creative is not of value. The Artist Inc Alumni Showcase is an opportunity to sample the robust assortment of artistic practices of people living and working in the Wichita community. Creative people exist here. There are conversations outside of the dominant narrative happening — right here. The issue Kansas faces in its creative life is not a lack of talent, nor a better pool of artists elsewhere, but a deep need for creative connections.
The Details
Artist Inc Alumni Showcase
December 6-28, 2024, Harvester Arts at the Lux, 120 E. 1st St. N. in Wichita
This exhibition is on view from 3-6 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays, and 5-9 p.m. Mondays (during the Wichita Sketch Club meeting). A closing reception will take place from 6-8 p.m. Friday, December 27.
Participating artists: Ric Dunwoody, Janet “Toni” Federico, Malissa Long, Mike Miller, Samantha Gales, Kinta McGhee, Kevin Kelly, Landen Swearingen, Lindsey Kernodle, Dale Small, Geli Chavez, Chloë Cloud, Andres Levaggi Villanueva, Trisha Coates, Kelsy Gossett Dennis, Suspicious Glaze, Sarah Chavez, ArtistsAplusB, Gina Searle Groszek, Tanna Burchinal, Lori Santos, Taylor McQueary, Lydia Humphreys, Edward Faun, Ramon Fonseca, Sunny Overholt, Pamela Lamont, Jenelle Robinson, Rachel Curtis, Tim Stone, Allison Stucky, Cort Anderson, Taiomah Rutledge, Shaunte' Levine, Sontia Levy Mason, Quintis Pinkston, and Ken Locke
Metered street parking is available on First and Market Streets.
Free
Learn more about Artist Inc and Harvester Arts.
Installation views of the Artist Inc Alumni Showcase, on view through December 28 at Harvester Arts.
Olivia D'Laine Schawe is a teaching artist living in Wichita, Kansas. Schawe is a recent graduate of Wichita State and is fostering community based arts practices.
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