Adaptation. Mutation. Transformation.By Lea AndersonOn exhibit through AugustExhibit/208208 Broadway Blvd. SE
Latest Article|September 3, 2020|Free
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Like it or not, a transformation is underway as our social fabric is tested, our economy challenged, our immune systems confronted and our patience tried. There is plenty of artwork being made right now that reflects these trials and our uncertain future. This is clearly a transitional time, but to what remains elusive. Drawing strength and inspiration from the natural world provides some solace, and we see in Lea Anderson’s new work she has done just that. Anderson’s Adaptation. Mutation. Transformation. is on display in the windows of Exhibit/208 as part of a series of exhibits in windows throughout Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Taos called Windows on the Future. Here, Anderson addresses change through our state flower, the yucca, collecting the husks and using them to create new work, giving them a new purpose. The yucca is a powerful plant, able to survive and thrive in the harsh New Mexico climate. Anderson has reconfigured yucca into a series of small sculptures pinned to the wall behind the window. Transformed into something new, the yucca endures, retaining something of the plant’s original identity while bending into a new form. Each sculpture is unique, but presented as a collection to create something greater. A community of transformed yucca-based sculptures right here in the desert of New Mexico for all to see and learn from. There is something inspiring in that.Displaying artwork in a window is not a new concept, but this project is perfect for this time. Access is unrestricted to the Windows on the Future project, and its value is enhanced by people’s ability to stay safe while viewing the exhibits. In speaking with organizers, it seems this project is somewhat open-ended in its duration. Some of the exhibits will remain, some will change, and some windows will go back to being what they were before. As goes life, goes Windows on the Future, and the advice remains the same for both: See as much of it as you can. For more information on this and other regional Windows on the Future projects, go to paseoproject.org/a-window-on-the-future/.