Blaise Bulletin

Mirrored Thoughts/Spaces Between, currently on view at SoHo’s Arts Connect New York, is a primo example of a group show done right. Everything about this exhibition, curated by Stephanie Adamowicz of Luxembourg & Dayan, is steeped in sincerity. The only guideline ACNY offered the curator was to create a show comprised of artists who do not currently have permanent gallery representation. This absence of direction lends itself as an incredible opportunity, which might have spooked a less talented art historian. With no crutch to lean on in the form of a curatorial proposition or bit of suggested inspiration, Stephanie seemed to turn to that time-tested back-up plan we all learned in second grade: stop, look, and listen. She turned inward and created for herself the mental space needed to return to your roots as a lover of art: What is it about that vast sea of unknown emerging artists that makes you swoon? Stephanie’s enthusiasm for the exhibition is born of her own sincerity, in that it is based on and reflective of her personal aesthetic. To create an exhibition based on what you love and nothing more is a very simple concept, perfect and pure in intention, often overlooked by today’s ambitious young curators and dealers looking to create an ill-advised splash. Just because it’s a simple concept, however, certainly does not mean it’s by any means an easy process. Recounting her process of conceiving of the show, Stephanie told to me at the opening party that she couldn’t quite articulate what the curatorial concept was until she’d already narrowed the search down to the four artists she wanted to include. Only once she’d mentally staged the artists (Jesse Hamerman, Jamie Lund, Carrie Pollack and Letha Wilson) next to each other did the intended tone of the exhibition conceptualize itself. In a sense, Stpehanie had the courage to put the cart before the horse. Curating a thoughtful, heart-felt, challenging exhibition is not like writing a middle school essay; you don’t have to first write a thesis statement, them comb through your notebooks for source material and examples. That would be too easy. Curating is about risk-taking, and exposing yourself to others’ understanding, or potential misunderstandings. It’s an exercise in the subtle strand of courage that, if we’re lucky, permeates our mundane daily decisions. It’s about not necessarily knowing what you’re you’re looking for until you see it. Mirrored Thoughts/Spaces Between is on view through 22 March. Learn more about Stephanie Adamowicz on her blog All Art is Contemporary or in her regular contributions to the Huffington Post.