United We Stand

Celebrating Fourth of July this year is especially fraught after the recent Supreme Court rulings on abortion rights, gun control and environmental regulation. These decisions will have a dire impact on the lives of millions of Americans, leaving many in this country feeling scared and angry. Facing this new affront to our civil rights, coupled with the shocking revelations about the prior administration being uncovered on a daily basis, we turn once again to art to help us understand and think critically about the state of our country. To this end, we thought it important to showcase the work of Adrienne Sloane, who has been working on a new series incorporating puzzle pieces that reflects the uncertainty and absurdity of our current political climate. Culture Wars and United We Stand will be on view at 13FOREST through July 16.

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Adrienne Sloane, Culture Wars, painted wood, cardboard, plastic, tin box

Culture Wars is a natural outgrowth of my custom puzzle series coupled with the political commentary of much of my work. Unfortunately, our increasingly polarized national political landscape seems less concerned with the good of the country and the rule of law, instead becoming an extremist strategic game dominated by false claims of a stolen 2020 election. Recent decisions by a right wing Supreme Court only add to the erosion of civic and civil responsibilities we have as citizens of these United States.

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Adrienne Sloane, United We Stand, knit fiber, puzzle pieces, cardboard, plastic, magnets

United We Stand The country is riven in ways not seen since the Civil War. Two years of pandemic coupled with the increasing disastrous effects of climate change, make it hard to understand how the country will resolve these differences without dissolving into a river of blood. Working in puzzles along with fiber, my original medium, this piece is a natural evolution of my interest in challenging viewers by presenting interpretations of the current political landscape as I see it.

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An open letter of thanks

At the end of August in 2021, a fire broke out in the café next to the gallery. We were lucky to sustain little damage to our building and to the artwork on display, but repairs were slow and would take several months to complete. The pandemic had already presented many challenges to our gallery and to the larger arts community. When it began, like many small businesses we were unsure of what the future would hold; however we quickly saw the collective need for art grow through difficult days of isolation and uncertainty. Thanks to our supportive community of art lovers, 13FOREST persevered and, with that support bolstering us, we knew we would be able to keep the gallery going through this latest challenge.

Though our space would be closed for months while awaiting repairs, we wanted to continue supporting our artists and bringing art to the community. Just a week after the fire, we held our annual pop-up in Provincetown. When we returned, we temporarily moved to the lower level of the headquarters of Food Link, an Arlington nonprofit that graciously welcomed us for what would become six months. Today, more than eight months after the fire, our home on Mass Ave is finally ready for our return. Thank you to everyone who stuck with us and continuously encouraged us. We cannot wait to celebrate our reopening with you!

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Object Permanence - new series by Catherine Graffam

Painter Catherine Graffam has developed a new series of thought-provoking paintings that combine the instantaneous quality of Polaroid photography and the slower, more reflective process of painting to explore the nature of memory and the experience of memory fading away. Read Graffam’s thoughts about her Object Permanence series below.

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object permanence n.7 (sarah in the kitchen), acrylic gouache on Polaroid

A Polaroid is the closest a photograph can be to a painting. Each integral film Polaroid ever taken is unique and impossible to truly reproduce since the first SX-70 model entered the public’s hands in 1972. “Integral film” is the fancy term for the proprietary white bordered, square(ish), instant photo we imagine when we hear the word “Polaroid.” Each integral film Polaroid photo contains a pod of chemicals underneath the larger border on the bottom that spreads developer, dyes, and acid layered together in a secret sauce beneath the plastic when the photo is squeezed through the rollers at the mouth of the camera. This process bakes the image into the chemical baklava as the chemicals work their magic, resulting in every single photo being not just an image, but a unique tangible object. So sure, today you could scan a Polaroid photo using a Epson Perfection V500 flatbed scanner at 1200dpi, open it in Adobe Photoshop CC, edit it to be as close as visibly possible on a two dimensional plane on a 24 inch high definition IPS display, then have it sent to be printed inside a perfect bound book by high quality inkjet printers en masse to exact scale and color...But just like if you were to do this to a painting, it would not fully reproduce it.

However, where the important distinction lies between a painting and an integral film Polaroid photo is what a Polaroid captures versus a painting. The development process of a Polaroid is not completely instantaneous, the image exposed is. Though instantaneous, a Polaroid never actually captures the present, only the immediate past; the moment when the shutter was pressed. So when the camera spits out the photo it is actually a physical, unchangeable memory, emerging like magic. I think of a painting more as a collection of decisions compiled from memories. Even if I were to paint something directly from observation, there are still gaps in time where I am not looking at what is in front of me and I am using my short term memory combined with my built up knowledge of paint to recreate it from my mind’s eye on the canvas.

object permanence n.18 (horses gathered in the woods), acrylic gouache on Polaroid

Sometimes what a Polaroid has recorded is at odds with how I remember the moment I took it. I notoriously have a terrible memory, and have to be constantly reminded of important events involving my flesh body that I have no recollection of. A diving catch to win a baseball game, funerals of family members and birthday parties I attended, the names of basically anyone I meet for the first 9 times. It is not for a lack of emotional investment, I am an overwhelmingly sentimental person. My sentimentality only seems to manifest with objects, as my filing cabinets would confess. I collect things as an overcompensation for my lack of ability to remember things of significance, keeping them as trigger objects so that I can keep at least a slice of my past retained.

In the summer of 2021 I was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder after an entire lifetime of struggling with debilitating symptoms. There is a phenomenon amongst people with ADHD where we can lack what is colloquially referred to as “object permanence.” Object permanence is clinically the concept of fundamental development in young children that refers to gaining the ability to recognize that items and people still exist even when they can’t be seen or heard. Folks with ADHD don’t literally think objects or people disappear when they are out of sight, but it refers to the inability to remember that they are there. For instance, if I use a pair of scissors and put it in a drawer when I’m finished, I may forget that there is a pair of scissors in the house entirely when I end up needing them again. I have found that this extends to digital photos as well. I have over 10,000 saved images in cloud storage taken on my phone over the last 5 years but because they are tucked away in a folder within a virtual drive accessible only by a website I forget not only that the photos themselves exist, but all the memories meant to be saved by them.

object permanence n.3 (my hand), acrylic gouache on Polaroid

Through the process of marrying both painting and a tangible instant photo, I want to capture what it feels like to lose memories to time; parts of a mental image fading away or obscured and difficult to parse, unimportant details truly disappeared. Many of the painted layers of the pieces from this series were done weeks or months after the photo was taken. I hide them from myself to let my internal memory naturally loosen and forget details of the scene. Then, when met with those details upon reviewing the photos I will start by degrading them.

Catherine Graffam

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13FOREST Holiday Pop-up

Due to the fire that occurred in the café next to 13FOREST on August 28, we have temporarily closed our location at 167A Massachusetts Avenue until repairs can be made and we can reopen. However we have opened a pop-up nearby at 108 Summer Street in Arlington in the lower level of the Food Link Hub.

Although this is not a typical retail location, it is a great space for us to get reestablished as we navigate the fire remediation process. You can drop in to view our great selection of fine art and gifts, or make an appointment if there is something specific you are looking for. We hope to see you soon!

Hours

Wed - Sat, 12-6 pm or by appointment

Location

108 Summer Street
Arlington, Mass. 02474

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How to find us

Our holiday pop-up is located on the lower level of the Food Link Hub. Please enter the building through the front entrance on Summer Street - you will see our logo in the window. From there, follow the signs leading downstairs to our temporary space. We ask that you please make sure not to enter any areas where Food Link staff and volunteers are working; we would hate to interrupt the important work they are doing. If you are having trouble finding us, please call us at 781.641.3333.

 

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Parking

There is street parking available on Summer Street in front of the Food Link Hub (see right). Although there are two lots on either side of the building, those spaces are reserved for Food Link vehicles and we ask that you please not park there.

Available parking at 108 Summer Street

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An Update About 13FOREST Gallery

Early in the morning of Saturday, August 28, there was a fire at Thrive Café next door to the gallery. While the fire did not enter our space, we have suffered water and smoke damage inside the gallery. We are so grateful to the Arlington Fire Department, who put out the fire quickly; to their great credit, the firefighters entered the gallery and moved our artwork out of harm's way, preventing much more extensive damage. We were very lucky that no one was injured, and that damage to the artwork seems minimal so far; however, we will need to remain closed for the foreseeable future until our space can be repaired and treated for smoke exposure. You can read more about the fire here.

Through this challenging past year and a half we have been overwhelmed by your support for our gallery and our artists. We are so grateful to have been able to keep bringing art to the Boston community in these difficult times. With this new challenge ahead of us, we hope we can continue to count on your support. Although we are deeply saddened by this event and its effects on our artists, we are highly motivated to keep the gallery running virtually, and to re-open our physical space as soon as possible. As we learn more about what it will take to re-open, we will keep you updated with new developments. At 13FOREST we are deeply passionate about our mission to showcase the best artists that New England has to offer, and we hope to get back to doing that in person as soon as we can.

Essence in Artscope

We are so excited to have our current exhibition Essence: In Celebration of Juneteenth featured in the July/August issue of Artscope magazine. KT Browne of the magazine spoke with guest curator Cedric “Vise1” Douglas about his intentions behind the show: “These [artists] are trailblazers, and my hope is that the audience walks away with a curiosity about who these people are.”

Read the full article here, or keep an eye out for the print edition, which will be available soon in the gallery.

2021 Father's Day Gift Guide

Need something more unique for Dad this year than a tie or grill accessories? We’ve got some great suggestions for you in our online shop - check them out below! You can choose in-store pick-up to make sure you get your gift just in time.

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2021 Mother's Day Gift Guide

Spring is here and things are starting to look up in the world. After a difficult year, make sure to let Mom know how much you appreciate her with a special surprise for Mother’s Day.

We’ve curated a selection of great gifts in our online shop - you can buy online and pick up in store or have it shipped directly to Mom. We also have even more things in the gallery than are available online - stop by or make an appointment to browse our selection before Mother’s Day on May 9.

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Drawing inspiration from nature, Kimberley Huestis of Porcelain and Stone designs delicate and charming porcelain jewelry accented with 22k gold.

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After a year of being stuck at home, Carlos Santiago’s colorful and expressive floral still lifes bring some much needed color into the home.

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Each hand-painted piece of porcelain Françoise Han pottery is unique, making it the perfect special gift for someone who appreciates function and beauty.

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Rebecca Lockhart’s sleek and modern jewelry is made out of unlikely materials - industrial manufacturing components. Lockhart adds a bright pop of color for extra fun.

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Mark Luiggi’s whimsical Alpha Blocks series combines children’s block toys with miniature drawings to create a unique decorative object that will brighten Mom’s day.

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A Cape Cod institution since the 1950’s, Jobi Pottery has long been a favorite for those looking to give a unique New England gift. We are proud to be the only venue off the Cape where you can find these delightful hand painted ceramics. With a range of styles and colors, this pottery is great for any occasion.

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Featuring a series of charming vignettes, Amy Keller’s mini prints attached to wooden blocks and covered with a thin layer of wax are perfect for adding some cheer to small spaces.

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Valentine's Day Gift Guide

If you’re looking for something unique to give your loved ones this Valentine’s Day we’ve got the perfect thing, from traditional gifts like jewelry to something more quirky like a gyotaku octopus print. Browse our online gift guide below for some inspiration!

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Painter Karla Quattrocchi uses bold blocks of color and unconventional materials to create her charming paintings.

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Maeve Mueller’s delicate porcelain jewelry can add a touch of glamour to any outfit.

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Beverly Carter uses a variety of decorative techniques, from screen printing to saggar firing, to create the beautiful designs on her ceramic vessels.

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Caitlin Duennebier uses humor to infuse every one of her sculptures with a compelling personality.

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Gyotaku is the traditional Japanese printmaking technique that Stephanie Mason uses to create her delightful octopus prints.

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Wendy Jo New’s hand-crafted designs are perfect for anyone who loves whimsy and a pop of color.

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A Cape Cod classic, Jobi Pottery’s colorful and functional pottery makes a great gift for everyone. We just returned from a quick trip down to Truro and came back with over 80 new pieces!

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Transition of Power: 2021 - A Closer Look

On January 20, 2021, we were proud to commemorate the inauguration of President Biden with the opening of our current exhibition Transition of Power: 2021. At 13FOREST Gallery we consider it an important part of our practice to document artistic responses to the American political system, and have hosted a Transition of Power exhibition for each new president in the past thirteen years. For this exhibition, we put out an open call for artwork, and the artists featured in Transition of Power: 2021 portray a broad range of responses to the Trump administration, from humor and anger to hope for the future under our new President. You can read their statements about the work included in Transition of Power: 2021 below.

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Scott Bakal, Dim Stars: Transition of Power, acrylic, graphite and ink on panel

Scott Bakal

The United States has endured the last four years of a completely detached administration.

A little over twelve years ago, we saw the intersection of multiple issues that culminated in our current political situation, including the spread of misinformation by Fox News and social media and the rise of the Tea Party and its harmful ideology.

The country has turned to extremes and this election seems to have put conservatives and liberals on call that extremism needs to stop. Clearly, extremism in government and for that matter, in society, does not work. We have seen similar extremes play out in Russia, China, Cuba and other countries over the last century.

The last 12 years of extremism is too much to put into one painting to illustrate this potential turning point in America’s history. This painting is a simple statement of the potential successes we have in front of us coming out of the confusion and pollution of the fabric of our society that we have all endured.

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Resa Blatman

I was inspired to make this painting during the ravaging Australian wildfires in 2020, and while my own emotions were in turmoil over the steady dismantling of our democracy. The last four years have weighed heavily on me and my community of friends and loved ones, and I am grateful for the transition of power on January 20th. However, as I write this, there are still many political unknowns and fears. Nevertheless, I remain hopeful for a renewed America that embraces its vast differences and beauty, and the capacity to save its democracy. Blaze reveals the paradox of an unfolding environmental and societal tragedy mixed with an underlying allure because beauty and regeneration reside even in the darkest expressions of humanity and nature.

Resa Blatman, Blaze, oil, acrylic and colored pencil on Mylar

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Jean Marie Cummiskey, Divided States of Insanity, mosaic with zipper

Jean Marie Cummiskey

As a child, I was always interested in flags and the countries they represented. In college as a double major in studio art and political science, I studied the governments and politics of these same countries with an eye toward a career as a political cartoonist. My preferred mediums have evolved over the years from woodcuts, pen and ink, and cartoons to photography and mosaics today. My preferred subjects continue to include politics, nature, and cities and their people. This piece presents my perception of the current state of American politics with the tear in the flag representing the divisions. However, I am hopeful that the divisions may be bridged, symbolized by the zipper inserted in the tear.

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Gary Duehr

What are the faces of modern American politics?

Come election year, the fans follow one candidate or another, true believers with a dose of fanaticism. They pump the air, they chant "USA USA!," they grab selfies with their leader, they wave flags and stomp the floor and bellow through bullhorns.

Based on news photos of the crowds at campaign events, these images use models to recreate the fans' behavior, isolating it under bright studio lights. Here, one or two at a time, we can examine their gestures as a social psychologist might.

We can survey their colorful getups, look them in the eye for a trace of craziness, and feel their mixture of exhilaration and earnestness. Their enthusiasm is contagious, and a little bit frightening.

Gary Duehr, Arena: Captain America, pigment print

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Caitlin Duennebier

Otentou Sama (おてんとうさま) is a charm which hangs above your door. It watches you everywhere, your every move, and gives you punishment and reward for your behavior.

The charms stem from Japanese folklore; they are a symbol made out of desperation, hoping there is a higher power holding people accountable. 

Caitlin Duennebier, Otentou Sama, air dry clay, acrylic

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Eben Haines, Monuments, graphite, acrylic, beeswax, plaster, wood

Eben Haines

The argument for preserving Confederate statues often comes down to the preservation of history, and the preservation of beauty. Of course, these monuments personify neither of these tenets, as images of propaganda cannot claim to be made in the name of historical fact or aesthetic improvement. Propagandistic imagery is created to divide and conquer, to grow power, and to duly convince those searching for easy answers. Hatred is not beautiful. These monuments were erected cheaply and distributed widely, made to celebrate the seditious men who fought and died for the right to own other people.

Under the Trump administration, the preservation of these statues has served as a beacon for his base, the same white nationalists who carried Confederate flags into the Capitol Building during an armed insurrection, at the behest of a sitting president. These statues are an excuse to preserve a vile ideology, dating back to the country's founding, and perpetuated by violence. One cannot expect justice in a country where the advocates of human bondage stand proudly before courthouses and schools across the nation, stoic reminders of the men who fought to "Keep America Great."

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Joe Keinberger

I remember the “Satanic Panic” of the 80s, when it was a popular belief that shadowy Satanic cabals were sacrificing babies and furthering a corrosive, anti-Christian agenda via heavy metal music, Dungeons and Dragons, cartoons, and anything counterculture. I thought we were beyond that now, but here we are: it is 2021 and we have elected officials that believe in a “Deep State” of Democratic lawmakers that worship Satan and eat children. A worldwide pandemic is simply a “hoax,” and our recent (and unequivocally legitimate) election was “stolen” by said "Deep State.” How does a deeply unstable America move forward when conspiracy theories and social media misinformation divide us over everything from climate change to an increasingly deadly pandemic?

Joe Keinberger, …and it came to pass that the lullaby of conspiracy became anthem, acrylic, acrylic ink, pen, pencil on wood

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Patt Kelley, Trump 2020, digital illustration

Patt Kelley

It’s been a loooong four years. Before the election I made a satirical campaign poster. I wanted to highlight some of the accomplishments of the Trump administration.

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Ted Ollier

It has been said that everything Trump touches dies. Now the task of removing the stain of his pernicious regime from our fractured country falls not only on a new administration, but on everyone left who actually believes our national motto, "E Pluribus Unum."

Good luck, everyone.

Ted Ollier, Good Luck, cardboard, laminated paper, acrylic

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Ellen Shattuck Pierce, Scylla Retold, linoleum print

Ellen Shattuck Pierce

I am ecstatic to have the power of our democracy in the hands of a woman at long last.  I am excited that our Vice President is the first Black woman and the first South Asian woman to hold the office.  I am excited that progressive women of color Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley, and Rashida Tlaib will join her on the Hill.  Over the past four years, these women, along with Elizabeth Warren and Hilary Clinton have suffered derision in the form of misogyny and racism.  Therefore, it is satisfying to depict them as the six-headed, twelve-legged legendary Greek monster Scylla, who lives in a sea cave and tears the heads off and consumes all fisherman who sail past.  These women have stood up for themselves and for us, defending our democratic ideals with fierceness and intelligence.  Bring on the transition of power!

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Adrienne Sloane, Hope Takes Flight, stiffened and stretched knit cotton, five panels

Adrienne Sloane

Much of my work is a response to the news.  As a sculptural knitter, I have often looked for new ways to work creatively in my medium. Stretching and stiffening knit in this piece gave me a stable platform on which to work.

Hope Takes Flight plays visually with the traditional colors of party affiliations while embodying the hope that the upcoming transfer of power between them goes well.

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Naoe Suzuki, We still want to believe (triptych), three letterpress prints

Naoe Suzuki

This triptych was the last thing I created before the pandemic started last year. But it was the summer of 2019 when I had the phrase “we still want to believe” in my head and could not let it go. It was the time before the COVID-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movements. It seems long ago, but we were already living in the thicket of growing fake news. In the time of post-truth during the Trump administration, truth was more fragile than ever. Belief in science was not only challenged but shattered by the Trump administration regarding climate change and protecting the natural environment. 

The United States has suffered greatly in combating the coronavirus due to this lack of belief in science. In the last two months after the Presidential election, beliefs, whether based on evidence and facts or merely by convictions and feelings, moved people to the point of extremism and violence. 

At this critical inflection point in United States history regarding the transition of power, this work brings complex nuances and readings about our beliefs into the present moment. I wanted to explore multiple narratives and interpretations by displaying the triptych in different configurations.

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Joe Taveras

Perched in between a red and blue background, the subject reflects the chaos that has led up to this historic election. As the title suggests, this painting was created the night before Election Day 2020 in response to and because of growing political tension.

Joe Taveras, Night Before "Election", acrylic and oil on canvas

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