Now that we are finally emerging from the stronghold of isolation in the wake of COVID-19, the familiar phrase “wish you were here,” takes on new meaning. In Roberts Projects second visual iteration of this phrase, the nine artists in this exhibition reassert the notion of community and home, familiarity and friendship, kinship and new beginnings. Where the first show highlighted the sadness inherent in isolation, this new group of works celebrates our newfound human connections. Daniel Crews-Chubb continues his explorations into human intimacy in his vibrant series of couples and Alexandre Diop’s Autoportrait Ligamentaire, a mixed-media work on burlap is an intensely realized exploration into the notion of “self.” Wangari Mathenge’s It is What It Is, also a portrait, is unflinching in its loveliness just as Otis Kwame Kye Quaicoe’s Jokey and Nana, is a luminous and colorful portrait of good friends and familiars. Beyte Saar’s Eye of the Beholder, represents the act of being seen and recognized by a ubiquitous and all- knowing God. Brenna Youngblood’s Wish You Were Here, captures the moment between being one thing and another as a folding chair appears half open, suggesting that we are constantly in a state of transformation. Ardeshir Tabrizi’s Horsemen, is a surrealistic take on being accountable as the entire image emerges from several vertical sluices of color, and Taylor White’s I am the Pilot, is a humorous look at car culture. Finally Evan Nesbit’s large free hanging painted panels are fun and enigmatic, and certainly offer a fitting welcome to newly minted gallery goers. This dynamite show ends this weekend.

Wish You Were Here II

Roberts Project

March 19 – April 16, 2022