Surrender
Mary-Ann Kokoska
GALLERY I
Mary-Ann Kokoska
Fire and Rain - A Land Divided I, 2014
Graphite, charcoal, pastel, ink on paper and Mylar
8 x 9 x 1 inches
August 1 - September 1, 2019
Opening Reception: Thursday, August 1, 6-8pm
A.I.R. Gallery is pleased to announce Surrender, an exhibition of drawings by Alumnae Artist Mary-Ann Kokoska. This is Kokoska’s first solo exhibition in New York City.
Surrender includes a selection of large scale installations with drawings that address the changing nature of our landscapes and the artist’s altered perception of them in response to global warming. In so doing, Kokoska revisits and questions the traditions of representing picturesque vistas in light of recent events around climate change. Several of her drawings leak from the wall onto the floor, as if they might be reaching out for aid or threatening to entangle the viewer in their uncontained chaos.
Kokoska is particularly interested in the effects of monster storms and tornados, as well as the devastating wildfires and floods that have been so destructive in recent years. She composes her drawings in fragments with bits and pieces of paper, gestural notations, and glimpses of representational imagery. These elements are loosely organized such that one merges into another, gradually building and finding a new form. Kokoska deliberately plays with ambiguity and uncertainty, reflecting the precariousness of our current natural climate.
Mary-Ann Kokoska was born in Toronto, Canada. Her education includes an MFA from Concordia University in Montreal. She has exhibited her works nationally and internationally in commercial and public galleries, as well as alternative artist-run centers. Kokoska is also the recipient of awards from the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, and Colorado State University, where she is currently a Professor in the Department of Art and Art History.