Old City’s Clay Studio continues with its annual “Small Favors”, a virtual exhibition for 2021.
There’s an old saying that goes, “You never miss the water until the well runs dry.” That, oddly, applies to the glut of art walks that were once a teeming-over element of this city’s exhibition and gallery scene. In particular, I’m thinking about the shop worn, but still fun and valuable First Fridays that made my time in Old City a delightful, and drunken, era. The annual “Small Favors” exhibition throughout the several floors of The Clay Studio (139 N 2nd Street) was always at the top of that gallery go-to list.
“Small Favors” is a cool, yearly, curated event that challenges local artists to create unique pieces to fit a tiny, designated space – a four-inch cube. Of course, all things being equal and virtual, this year’s “Small Favors 2021,” has expanded to include hundreds of artists from around the globe. And a curated collection of 300 pieces made from various mediums. According to its press, “Some artists submitted works similar to what they typically create, at a reduced scale. However, other artists use the showcase as an opportunity to make something entirely new and unique.”
Running until April 25, with items on display and for sale at The Clay Studio’s Bonovitz Gallery, “Small Favors 2021,” was co-jurored with the C-Studio’s staff and Guest Juror, Kensuke Yamada. Kensuke, a one-time Clay Studio Resident and current Professor at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, who worked together to select pieces from over 800 applications. Plus, “Small Favors 2021” presents a rare opportunity for art collectors and fans to bring home an extraordinary, limited-edition work of art from acclaimed artists at affordable prices:$35 to $1,000.
Jennifer Zwilling, the Curator of Artistic Programs at The Clay Studio spoke to dosage MAGAZINE and I about the “Favor” able exhibition.
A.D. Amorosi: How and in what deepest form has the pandemic changed your notions of art, curation and ownership, for the gallery and yourself?
Jennifer Zwilling: Rather than changing my notions of art, the pandemic as deepened and amplified my understanding of the purpose of art. Artists make visible and material the collective emotions of the society in their time. At the moment of creation this can serve as a catharsis for the viewer, in the future it can act as a record of what people were feeling. The written word is thought of the ultimate recorder of history. But writing can be as unreliable a communicator as any other art form. The best kind of art guides the viewer to interpret and use their own experience as a guide when looking, and it can therefore be a deeply truthful reflection of our collective experience. The pandemic of the last year cannot be unstitched from the social justice movement that has risen in parallel. It is through the lenses of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility that we must refocus our notions of art, curation, and ownership. Art reflects and affects society, it is our duty to use it to push forward toward a truly anti-racist world.
A.D. Amorosi: How and what have you witnessed at the gallery level in terms of what collectors and fans did or didn’t buy? Say in comparison to this time last year, one week before the COVID lockdown started?
Jennifer Zwilling: The Small Favors opening was the last big, crowded event we hosted at The Clay Studio in March 2020. It was festive, boisterous, and charged with the energy of people finding art that inspired them, showing it to their friends and making the decision to take it home. This year our team worked incredibly hard again, this time to make sure each piece was photographed and uploaded into our system, ready to purchase when the show went live online. As the show approached, the artists showed their enthusiasm for the show’s challenge, to create a work of art to fit in a 4” cube, by applying in record numbers. 800 objects to jury! And then posting images of the works in progress and after they had been accepted on Instagram. We had to create a new highlight on our Instagram profile just to show the hundreds of #smallfavors2021 images that were flowing in. When the show went live online there was an incredible response from collectors. Two hundred of the three hundred objects in the show sold in the first five days. Artists checked the website and reacted with excitement when their pieces sold. Nothing can replace the feeling of being together in person to look at and discuss work in real life, but the format of Small Favors allowed for a joyous feeling to pervade in the virtual space.
A.D. Amorosi: How and why did you decide to select Kensuke as your guest juror? What was your criteria and how did he meet them?
Jennifer Zwilling: Kensuke Yamada is an alum of The Clay Studio Resident Artist Program. He has spent much of his career teaching, and he makes wonderful work that resonates on a universal level. In my 6 years at The Clay Studio, I haven’t had a chance to spend too much time talking with him, as his Residency ended before I arrived, and I’ve wanted to get to know him better. Looking through hundreds of artworks together is a good way to form an immediate bond! The pandemic erased the conception that the juror had to be local, or come in person to the show, so we felt more free to pick someone in a distant place, like Arkansas!
A.D. Amorosi: What are the results of your collaboration? What does the overall collection in Small Favors 2021 look and feel like?
Jennifer Zwilling: For viewers, it’s a chance to become a collector for the first time, or add works by favorite artists. The lower price points of the show make the idea of collecting art accessible to more people. We want people to understand that buying art benefits you with a beautiful object, and benefits the artist, supporting them to continuing pursuing creativity. Artists help the world by revealing universal truths. With apologies to Bruce Nauman. A collection of 300 works of art by talented artists who range in experience from emerging to established. We have often heard, and this year is no different, the excitement of a young person for whom this is their first exhibition. The fact that they are shown alongside well-known artists makes it more exciting. Established artists get a chance to do something fun and challenging, many make work for this show every year. At our virtual opening, we even had an artist who said that each January they start their year making small things for Small Favors. And it’s a way to focus and consider how they will challenge their artmaking for the rest of the year.
About Post Author
