We might not have a planet left soon – Groupshow

Following an invitation by 68projects, the American artist, curator, and director of CANADA gallery, Adrianne Rubenstein, selected nine ambiguous artists for the exhibition We might not have a planet left soon, presented during Gallery Weekend.

Asked about her decision on the lineup, Rubenstein responded:
 
“This is not a manifesto. I, Adrianne, wrote it the other night at 1 in the morning, alone.
We were talking about something good to do, something to save, and we landed on this idea that we might not have a planet left soon. We were opening our can of dinner and thinking about the garbage pile in the ocean, about all the dinners and the take-out and the plastic containers in this city. We were thinking about pennies and keys, metal that can’t be put back in the ground, can’t be recycled. What if an architect designed a giant pyramid that sat atop the garbage pile in the ocean? Something beautiful and monumental, yet utilitarian in its design. (…)We are a group of abstract storytellers and object makers from in and around New York. I think a lot of the paintings look German, but what do I know? I think we all believe in it. We hope to share and commemorate our experience and the experiences of others which we can only imagine. We are trying to be hopeful, even if it means taking refuge in a bit of ignorance. We keep on with our work. There is no question that the broader conversation, the commonality among us as artists, is our wish to be better than ourselves as some collective whole. This show is made by a group of artists at what could be the end of the world. It isn’t fun anymore to joke about ascendancy, sanctuary, or privilege. But here we are, nine women in a room.We might not have a planet left soon is a soliloquy about painting. The time it takes to make something. Color and form. Dedication. As the planet unravels—which it’s always been doing at every stage—you plant a flower and it is beautiful. More beautiful the more in contrast it is with its background. A flower in outer space, a flower growing out of a broken brick wall.”
 

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Yevgeniya Baras (b. 1982)

Received an MFA in Painting and Drawing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, a BA in Fine Arts and Psychology, and an MS in Education from the University of Pennsylvania. Baras has exhibited widely in solo, two-person, and group exhibitions in the U.S., Europe, and South America. She is a cofounder of the artist-run gallery Regina Rex and lives and works in New York City.
 

Gina Beavers (b. 1975)

New York–based artist creating sculptural relief paintings with acrylic on canvas. Her work draws heavily from Instagram imagery, including #foodporn and makeup tutorials, transforming social-media advertising aesthetics into exaggerated painterly objects.
 

Katherine Bradford (b. 1940)

Lives and works in New York City. Her work is included in major museum collections including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Brooklyn Museum. She has received numerous awards including a Guggenheim Fellowship and is a senior critic at Yale University.
 

Kimia Ferdowsi Kline (b. 1985)

New York–based painter with an MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute. She has completed international residencies and exhibitions and curates the permanent art collection of the Wythe Hotel in Brooklyn.
 

Jackie Gendel (b. 1974)

Brooklyn-based artist with extensive international exhibition history. Her work has been reviewed in Artforum, The New York Times, Art in America, and The New Yorker.
 

Pam Glick (b. 1956)

Creates abstract, psychologically charged landscapes using flashe and acrylic. Her work often references Niagara Falls as a metaphor for change and renewal.
 

Joanne Greenbaum (b. 1953)

New York–based painter with a long international exhibition history. Her work is included in major museum collections, including the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
 

Maia Ruth Lee (b. 1983)

Born in Busan, Korea, raised in Kathmandu, Nepal, and currently living in New York. Her work draws on ritual, shrines, and personal systems of belief tied to movement, self-improvement, and ceremony.
 

Dona Nelson (b. 1947)

Known for large-scale, two-sided paintings and installations that resist photographic reproduction. She has exhibited widely, including at the Whitney Biennial, and her work is held in major public collections.
 

Adrianne Rubenstein (b. 1983)

Artist and curator based in New York, director of CANADA gallery. Her work and exhibitions have been widely reviewed in Artforum, W Magazine, and The New York Times.