The WAH Center is pleased to present The New Academy: WAH Bridges Student Artists, a multi-media group exhibition of students pursuing their BFA or MFA degrees in the greater New York City area, on view from October 4 through October 12, 2014.
Though the word “academy” often elicits an antiquated institution, rigidly conservative and ossified in tradition, The New Academy denounces this view as anachronistic. The authority of the academy began to disintegrate at the end of the 19th century as museums and galleries became the primary institutions concerned with recognizing and legitimizing various art practices. Nevertheless, the academy remains a relevant institution, becoming instead a platform for free debate and conceptual exchange between different generations of artists. With an emphasis on creative freedom, the new institutions of artistic instruction focus on fostering the individual and professional growth of artists through critique, mentorship, and intellectual stimulation. Thus, the academy has become a fluid concept, reflecting the idea of a heterogeneous and evolutionary “academic style” – understood in this context as a temporal style describing a student’s work – that varies depending on time, place, institution, teacher, and student. The present exhibition seeks to examine the way contemporary members of the academy, art students, perceive and define their relationship to this immensely influential yet diverse institution.
A poetic juxtaposition of historical and contemporary based on the Bridge Concept of WAH Center Founder & Artistic Director, Yuko Nii, The New Academy aims to create a bridge between the historical landmark building espoused by the WAH Center and a new generation of outstanding young artists, in a manner that acknowledges the wealth and significance of the past while embracing the novelty and innovation of the present. In this way, students are invited to write their own histories through a proactive and dynamic assertion of creative identity and individuality.
Participating Artists: Caroline Absher, Peter Francis Barnett, Sarah Brophy, Annie Carroll, Aeriane Cohen, Ilana Dodelson, Jamie Earnest, Hannah Epstein, WenQi Feng, Georgi Georgiev, Alex Gold, Malanya Graham, Jesse Handelman, Alexander Harristhal, Qiren Hu, Yasmina Huckins, Jenna Kang, Kristie Kish, Artemis Kotioni, Christina Martin, Eva Matos, Lily Reeves Montgomery, Yue Nakayama, Giovanna Olmos, GaHee Park, Idris Salaam, Hannah Schilsky, Jacob Small, Sydney Steen, Eric Westray, SeoKyeong Lee Yoon
The New Academy: WAH Bridges Student Artists will be on view Saturday, October 4th through Sunday, October 12th, 2014. Gallery hours are 12p-6p daily.
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