The artwork showcases a vibrant, abstract composition dominated by a blend of bold colors and expressive brushstrokes. The central focal point appears to be a dynamic, organic form that resembles a fantastical marine creature, with tentacle-like appendages and a sense of movement and energy. The use of a striking blue background accentuates the piece's sense of depth and dynamism, while the incorporation of geometric shapes and gestural lines adds a sense of visual complexity and experimentation. This contemporary painting likely reflects the artist's exploration of the relationship between the natural world and abstraction, inviting the viewer to engage with the work's visual narrative and emotional resonance. ...
Through her art, A'Driane Nieves maps the intricate terrain of identity, memory, and emotional life. What began as a personal healing practice has grown into a nuanced exploration of suppressed emotions, ancestral histories, and the complexities of self-expression. Nieves draws inspiration from artists such as Joan Mitchell, Cy Twombly, Alma Thomas, and Mary Lovelace O’Neal, working across painting, writing, soft sculpture, and text-based media. Her abstract expressionist approach emphasizes vulnerability, transformation, and nonlinear narratives, often incorporating text fragments—sometimes legible, sometimes obscured—that mirror the layered, multifaceted nature of the self. As a Black, queer, neurodivergent woman, Nieves uses her work to assert presence and agency, creating a visual language that resonates with resilience and empowerment. She is also the founder of Tessera Arts Collective, a nonprofit and magazine dedicated to fostering creative access, community building, and support for women and non-binary abstract artists of color. ...
Various Small Fires (Los Angeles /Dallas /Seoul) began as a series of conversations with artists and curators in Esther Kim Varet’s Venice Beach kitchen while working on her doctoral dissertation. VSF debuted in Hollywood as an official gallery in 2015 with a roster of artists and its current Johnston MarkLee Architects-designed building. The Hollywood gallery contains three exhibition spaces, a unique sound corridor, and an outdoor gallery. VSF’s exhibition program explores several curatorial lines: climate, equality, and an international conversation. The gallery is known for offering artists debut shows, creating intergenerational conversations among the artists on its roster, and solidifying artists’ legacies within art history. In 2019, VSF opened a second location in the Hannam neighbourhood of Seoul, South Korea, followed recently this Spring by VSFs third outpost in Dallas, Texas. While Varet has very personal connections to both locations, they are also superlative art communities. These expansions emphasise the gallery’s commitment to innovation and global dialogue in the twenty-first century. In 2021, VSF became a member of the Art Dealers Association of America (ADAA). ...
