Helen Altman
Independence

The MAC, Dallas, Texas
January 12 – February 23, 2019

The MAC is pleased to announce its inaugural exhibition, Independence, in the organization’s newly renovated exhibition space at 1503 S Ervay St in the Cedars neighborhood. Independence runs January 12 through February 23, 2019. An opening reception will be held Saturday, January 12 from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. This exhibition in The MAC’s south gallery coincides with the exhibition, Working Groups, in the north gallery.

Independence is a group exhibition bringing together Texas-based artists Helen Altman, Alicia Eggert, Letitia Huckaby, Liss LaFleur, and Leslie Martinez. How does history inform the present and shape how we view the future? Artists explore the overarching concept of time and the self in relation to society. Works in the exhibition reflect on issues of our times: identity, social dominance, ecological impact, and consumerism.

On readymade vintage chalkboards, Helen Altman captures seemingly ephemeral and detailed drawings of nature. The artist’s use (or reuse) of familiar objects elevates them and draws parallels to our own human predicament. The work invites the viewer to consider their own responsibility, as Altman considers her own, in the face of rapid deforestation and habitat destruction.

Interdisciplinary artist Alicia Eggert considers time and language her primary sculptural materials. Eggert coopts strategies and mediums associated with commercial signage and advertising, and employs them to encourage thoughtful introspection and reflection. Her work struggles to reconcile oppositional concepts of time – the linear and finite nature of human life within the context of a cyclical and seemingly infinite universe.

Letitia Huckaby’s photographic prints on heirloom fabrics explore political ethos and gender issues in our world today. Her work is a time capsule for the African-American experience. In her most recent body of work Huckaby partnered with 19 women of color artists from across the United States and Canada to create their own protest sign that expresses their personal suffrage and prayers for the future.

Liss LaFleur utilizes computer-generated video, personal prose and glass gelatin sculpture to make legible the queer outline of the artist’s current life. Personal descriptions of historical background and sexual harassment provide a backdrop for viewers to more deeply consider patriotism and consumption.

Leslie Martinez works in the space between painting and sculpture to explore the poetic nuances of transition, fragmentation, perceptual confusion, and parallax through unique hand mixed finishes and substrates. This visual and material language explores psychic and embodied notions of belonging and dis-belonging relating to queerness and border consciousness.

These five local artists work in a variety of media to provide artworks that engage the viewer. The exhibition emphasizes The MAC’s roots as a venue devoted to exhibiting local and regional talent. Locally focused programming will continue at The MAC’s new home at 1503 S Ervay, offering the region a venue where immersive and exploratory works can be presented outside the commercial realm. The MAC will create high profile opportunities for regional artists by exhibiting them side-by-side with artists from afield, setting their work on the world stage.