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    Natural Motifs Entwine the Monumental Figures of Robert Pruitt’s Divine Portraits

    “Portrait of Herman
    Smith from Atlantic
    City” (2024), charcoal, conté, pastel, and coffee wash on paper, 84 x 120 inches. All images © Robert Pruitt, courtesy of the artist and Salon 94, New York, shared with permission

    Natural Motifs Entwine the Monumental Figures of Robert Pruitt’s Divine Portraits

    June 6, 2025

    Art

    Grace Ebert

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    Through tight, circular marks and soft shading, Robert Pruitt creates portraits that invite viewers into a magical world. Rendered in a mix of charcoal, conté, and pastel, his works are rooted in storytelling and how personal narrative offers insight into broader, more collective questions about Southern culture, rituals, and enmeshed identities.

    The artist brings models into his Harlem studio and photographs them donning elaborately constructed costumes. His drawings emerge from these sessions, although Pruitt prefers a monumental scale. Rendered on paper dyed with coffee, the portraits stretch upwards of seven feet, their meticulous shading and linework backdropped by washes of the characteristically warm hue.

    “Eve hiding in the Garden of Eden” (2024), charcoal, conté, pastel, and coffee wash on paper, 84 x 60 inches

    A recent self-portrait presents the artist in his signature novelty glasses, the swirling X-Ray lenses resting on his forehead. His hands, rather than his face, are the subject of this ten-foot-wide work, and each wears gold jewelry, his hometown represented on a Houston Rockets ring. The title nods to the character of Herman Smith, played by Richard Pryor in the 1978 retelling of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The Wiz.

    Adornment is prominent in Pruitt’s works and serves a dual purpose: it provides a means to excavate questions about identity, culture, place, and time and also offers a chance to find something “fun and weird to draw,” he says. Recurring motifs like lemons, mushrooms, snakes, and birds are a more recent addition to his portraits, and they often envelop the central figure. In “Princess with a plague of Grackles,” for example, the quintessential Texan creature perches on a seated woman’s shoulders and arms.

    “Lately, I’ve been thinking more about the body as continuous with the world. Our bodies take things in, let things out—and that process, to me, signals a kind of equality with everything around us,” Pruitt tells Colossal.

    “Figure Crowned in T.S.U. Ceramic Headdress (After Roy Vinson Thomas)” (2024), charcoal, conté, coffee wash on paper, 84 x 60 inches

    Connecting to nature also invokes the divine and alludes to the artist’s constellation of references, whether it be his interest in science fiction, comic books, music, or his enduring love for “swampy, humid Houston, Texas,” he adds.

    I think part of it is nostalgia, especially in contrast to my life now in New York City. I miss home…On some level, these works feel like staging grounds for my own origin story—coming from a complicated metropolis that also feels deeply rural. A kind of Eden, but one filled with mosquitoes and stray dogs. Nature not as cute or comforting but indifferent—and still sacred.

    If you’re in New York, you can see Pruitt’s work in a solo exhibition named after a Sun Ra libretto, …Son…Sun…Sin…Syn…zen…Zenith, at Salon 94. Find more from the artist on his website and Instagram.

    “Lemon Tree” (2024), conté, pastel, and coffee wash, 84 x 60 inches. Photo by Brica Wilcox, courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles

    “Princess with a plague of Grackles” (2024), charcoal, conté, pastel, and coffee wash on paper, 84 x 60 inches

    “Y’all Are Just Gon Have to Make Amends” (2021), conté, charcoal, and pastel on coffee wash on paper, 87 1/4 x 63 1/8 x 2 inches. Photo by Dan Bradica

    “Man born with a veil” (2024), charcoal, conté, pastel, and fabric dye on paper, 84 x 60 inches

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    Reskate’s Youthful Murals Transform into Glowing Symbols of Peace

    Reskate’s Youthful Murals Transform into Glowing Symbols of Peace

    June 5, 2025

    Art

    Jackie Andres

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    During the day, Reskate’s extensive murals cover large swathes of space on buildings, stage backdrops, and even transformer towers. While these monumental public works are striking during sunlit hours, they completely transform with the darkness of night.

    Artists Javier de Riba and María López are the artistic duo behind Reskate. Primarily based in Barcelona, both artists travel throughout the year, visiting different corners of the world to complete projects to “raise awareness of care for culture, nature, and peace.”

    Detail of “Paix” (2025). Reims, Champagne. Image by Romain Berthiot

    Reskate’s subjects are often children. In a bold, illustrative style with graphic linework, the artists depict young figures holding objects related to the area in which the mural is placed, as well as articles that reflect global concerns. “The invisibilization and invalidation of youth as an active element that should be part of society is a burden that continues to be perpetuated,” the duo explains in a statement covering “Eulalia,” a previous mural completed in 2023.

    An example of this is prevalent in “Bruit,” taking the form of stage design for an immersive concert. In the piece, a young girl protectively wraps her arms around a fishbowl, nodding to the impact of sound pollution within the oceans.

    The pair recently completed an exhibit at the Museu Picasso in Barcelona and plans to continue their artistic endeavors both in and out of the public space. Find more work on Reskate’s website and Instagram, and browse prints in their online shop.

    “Harmony” (2025). Liverpool. Image by Corbyn John

    “Transformateur” (2024). Mareuil-sur-Ourcq, France. Image by Sophie Palmier

    Detail of “Transformateur” (2024). Mareuil-sur-Ourcq, France. Image by Sophie Palmier

    “Bruit” (2024). Le Mans, France

    Detail of “Bruit” (2024). Le Mans, France

    “Boycott” (2024). Ghent, Belgium

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    Color Therapy: Explore the Colossal Shop’s New Summer Collection

    Color Therapy: Explore the Colossal Shop’s New Summer Collection

    June 5, 2025

    ArtBooksColossalCraft

    Jackie Andres

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    Blazing orange sunsets linger upon lush green trees once again, marking longer days and the vibrant arrival of summer. The Colossal Shop’s new collection, Color Therapy, sets the tone for the warmer months ahead by celebrating radiant hues reflective of the season.

    This edition of new products has been carefully curated to uplift your spirits and space, bringing you feel-good and functional products designed and conceived by talented creatives. Whether you’re eyeing jammy egg candles and risograph matchboxes for patio dinner parties, or you’re after beach day games and a journal to take along on vacation, there’s something for everyone.

    We’re also happy to introduce a new way to skip shipping fees altogether for our Chicago folks. If you’re nearby, simply choose the “pick up in store” option at checkout to receive your items at Joy Machine. We’re always more than happy to say hi and reduce packaging waste (plus, you can spend some time with the art on our walls!).

    Dive into some our fresh picks below.

    Fill Your Space with Bright Summer Energy

    If detail-oriented domestic goods are your jam, you’ll love our new homey additions. Handcrafted ceramic pieces, locally made matchboxes, and artist-designed storage systems are just the tip of the iceberg! We’ve got an entire trove of small luxuries for you to explore.

    Brushstrokes and Bulletpoint Lists

    Handmade in their Des Moines, Iowa studio, each of Moglea’s notebooks are truly one-of-a-kind. Every A6 journal features hand painted front and back covers, high-quality wire binding, and an elastic closure. They’re truly perfect for for on-the-go adventures.

    Handy Tools for Budding Artists

    Alongside a restock of our building block pocket crayons is a new stamp kit! Layer forms, stack, overlap them to create landscapes and subjects, or apply them abstractly and rhythmically to conjure patterns. Inspire the young artist in your life to see the world through shape and color with these adorable art supplies.

    Pressing Petals in Your Pocket

    Whether you’re taking up flower pressing as a new summer hobby or you’ve been practicing the craft for years, Studio Wald’s pocket flower presses will make your life easier. Flatten and dry your favorite flowers as you roam during your evening walks and extensive backpacking journeys.

    Chromatic Competition

    Leisure time means game time. Pack your beach bag with a set of waterproof playing cards and a stowable game of Four-in-a-Row, while donning a striking bandana that doubles as a Snakes and Ladders game board. Functional and fashionable!

    Share the Sky with Someone Far Away

    Before you embark on your travels, don’t forget to pack these postcards from artist Macarena Ruiz-Tagle. Simply hold the Cyanometer, Sunset, or Air Pollution postcard up to the sky and peer through, mark the corresponding hue, and share a thought or two before dropping it in the mail.

    Lunch or Lists?

    Deli slices, eggs, toast, pasta, olives…. sounds a lot like your grocery list, doesn’t it? Make errands more fun with these sticky note samplers from artist Mel Andrel, who blurs the lines between productivity and play.

    As always, visit the Colossal Shop for more.

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    ‘Maintenance Artist’ Highlights Mierle Laderman Ukeles’ Radical, Caring Approach to Public Art

    “Touch Sanitation Performance” (1979-80).
    Photo by Robin Holland, © Mierle Laderman Ukeles, courtesy the artist and Ronald Feldman Gallery, NY, shared with permission

    ‘Maintenance Artist’ Highlights Mierle Laderman Ukeles’ Radical, Caring Approach to Public Art

    June 5, 2025

    ArtFilmSocial Issues

    Kate Mothes

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    We don’t typically associate city government and public works departments with conceptual artwork, let alone lasting collaborations. But for New York City artist Mierle Laderman Ukeles, who has been artist-in-residence at the city’s Department of Sanitation since 1977, her core creative inquiry centers around a radical shift in how we perceive art, who gets to experience it, and spotlighting the labor that happens “behind the scenes” to keep society running.

    The focus of a new documentary, Maintenance Artist, which premieres this weekend at the Tribeca Film Festival, Ukeles’ remarkable approach to art-making centers ideas of upkeep and nurturing. In 1969, she published “MANIFESTO FOR MAINTENANCE ART, 1969!,” a proposal for an exhibition titled CARE, in which she outlined parallels between her experiences as an artist and mother with those of sanitation workers. She asks, “…after the revolution, who’s going to pick up the garbage on Monday morning?”

    In the early 1970s, Ukeles performed a number of interventions drawing attention to labor and tasks that often go unnoticed in daily life, like “Washing / Tracks / Maintenance: Outside” (1973) and “Washing” (1974), the latter of which was staged outside of a former gallery in Soho. From 2 to 5 p.m. one June afternoon, she proclaimed that the area outside the front door was to be maintained as art, “normalized” again at 5:01 p.m. In a 1986 documentary short titled “Not Just Garbage,” she describes this early performance:

    I started to occupy the area through this sort of repetition of maintenance, of cleaning, and people watched me and were afraid to enter the space. When someone would enter, or go into the gallery and walk across, I would wipe out their tracks immediately. I would follow them on my hands and my knees and wipe out their tracks right up to their heels.

    In 1977, Ukeles was officially named the Department of Sanitation’s artist-in-residence, and her studio has occupied an office space within its building for decades. Maintenance Artist opens with historical footage of Ukeles introducing herself to sanitation workers as she began her more-than-four-decade tenure. The film then cuts to the artist and her studio manager, Catie J. Heitz, sifting through Ukeles’ archives to select work to send to the Smithsonian’s Archives of American Art.

    “Mierle is not a very typical artist,” Heitz says. “She works within systems, with people. Sometimes you can’t see the work because it was performance—it was an ephemeral thing—but what you can see now is the paperwork that represents it.”

    “Touch Sanitation Performance” (1980). Photo by Marcia Bricker, © Mierle Laderman Ukeles, courtesy the artist and Ronald Feldman Gallery, NY

    Ukeles’ work aims to illuminate the labor—and laborers—who play an immanently crucial role in keeping the city functioning on a daily basis, even though work like trash collection or street-cleaning is rarely noticed or lauded. “I desire to create a new kind of utterly public art, not in sealed-off, special places for the few, but art injected right into the city’s bloodstream of daily working life,” she said in an early statement.

    Ukeles “has created art that deals with the endless maintenance and service work that ‘keeps the city alive’ — urban waste flows, recycling, ecology, urban sustainability, and our power to transform degraded land and water into healthy inhabitable public places,” Ronald Feldman Gallery says, which represents the artist. “Ukeles asks whether we can design modes of survival—for a thriving planet, not an entropic one—that don’t crush our personal and civic freedom and silence the individual’s voice.”

    The first piece Ukeles completed in her DSNY residency was a durational performance titled “Touch Sanitation Performance,” in which she shook the hand of every sanitation employee—all 8,500 of them—and said to each one, “Thank you for keeping New York City alive.” That gratitude proved profound in some cases, as the interaction had lasting positive effects for some of the workers, who expressed how they had been harassed or humiliated while on the job in the past.

    “The Social Mirror” (1983), New York City 20 cubic yard Department of Sanitation garbage collection truck covered in glass mirror and acrylic mirror, created in collaboration with the New York City Department of Sanitation. Image © Mierle Laderman Ukeles, courtesy the artist and Ronald Feldman Gallery, New York

    Several of Ukeles’ works transformed the fleet of New York City trucks and equipment into moving artworks. “The Social Mirror” (1983) covered a garbage truck in a giant reflective glass surface, mirroring denizens of the city back at themselves. “Snow Workers Ballet” (2012) coordinated hulking machinery into a choreographed performance, positioning hard graft in the limelight through the unlikely merging of industrial vehicles and elegance.

    The Queens Museum was the first to present a major survey of Ukeles’ work in 2017, spanning five decades of her interrogations of feminism, freedom, crisis, and care. Beyond the conceptual or performative, Ukeles’ practice has always been social and community-oriented, prompting us to genuinely consider how we treat one another, recognize hard work, and, of course, define what art can be.

    Maintenance Artist is directed, written, and produced by Toby Perl Freilich in collaboration with writer Anne Alvergue, premiering on June 8 with additional screenings through June 14 in New York. Learn more on the film’s website.

    “Washing / Tracks / Maintenance: Outside” (1973), performance at Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, CT. Photo © Mierle Laderman Ukeles, courtesy the artist and Ronald Feldman Gallery, NY

    Mierle Laderman Ukeles, “The Social Mirror” (1983), installed at the Queens Museum in 2016. Photo by Hai Zhang, courtesy of ‘Maintenance Artist’

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    Literary Citations Abound in Andrew Salgado’s Vibrantly Layered Portraits

    “When We Cease To Understand The World (Grothendieck’s Ghost)”(2025), oil and oil pastel on linen, 180 x 160 centimeters. All images courtesy of Damian Griffiths and BEERS London, shared with permission

    Literary Citations Abound in Andrew Salgado’s Vibrantly Layered Portraits

    June 4, 2025

    Art

    Grace Ebert

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    A new body of work by Andrew Salgado (previously) unfurls from a central premise: we are the books we read. The artist, who works between London and New Brunswick, Canada, is literarily insatiable and considers every unread tome an opportunity of “infinite possibility.”

    At BEERS London, Salgado’s Self-Portrait as a Stack of Books presents a series of paintings that open like chapters and together, build a larger narrative. “My Year Of Rest And Relaxation” directly references Ottessa Moshfegh’s bleary novel of the same name and depicts a young protagonist inert and detached. There’s also “Véra (Please Come Over, You’re Always Welcome),” which portrays a resolute Véra Nabokov writing what might be one of her since destroyed letters.

    “Véra (Please Come Over, You’re Always Welcome)” (2025), oil and oil pastel on linen, 76 x 61 centimeters

    Salgado is continually interested in citation and the ways that memories and experiences layer atop and mold one another. Many of the authors he’s drawn to—Virgina Woolf, Jorge Luis Borges, and Margaret Atwood among them— “are influenced by art. By music and painting. They write about it all the time. The word is ekphrasis,” he adds. “Nabokov lists over 150 paintings in his collected works. So why shouldn’t the inverse also be true?”

    Intuitive marks of oil paint and pastel characterize Salgado’s works and seem to build up over time. Irregular stripes and circles add greater depth and dimension to patches of color delineating a dress or facial feature, leaving each scene with a certain indeterminacy. Allowing for interpretation and an array of personal references is essential to the artist’s thinking: “It’s ready for the taking. And whatever you take from it—from the books, or the paintings, or the ideas within—it’s all right. It’s all correct. There are no wrong answers,” he says.

    Self-Portrait as a Stack of Books is on view through June 28. Find more on Salgado’s website and Instagram.

    “My Year Of Rest And Relaxation” (2025), oil and oil pastel on linen, 90 x 100 centimeters

    “St. Augustine’s Confessions” (2025), oil and oil pastel on linen, 160 x 125 centimeters

    “Hotel Du Lac” (2025), oil and oil pastel on linen, 152 x 117 centimeters

    “Meditations” (Sayings, Speeches, Notes) (2025), oil and oil pastel on linen, 150 x 120 centimeters

    “The Last Evening On Earth” (2025), oil and oil pastel on linen, 125 x 100 centimeters

    “Beware of Pity” (2025), oil and oil pastel on linen, 80 x 75 centimeters

    “The Aleph & Other Stories” (2025), oil and oil pastel on linen, 216 x 164 centimeters

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    Mario Moore’s Oil Paintings Bridge Past and Present to Spotlight Black Resilience and Style

    “Pillars” (2024), oil on linen, 84 x 96 inches. All images courtesy of Mario Moore and Library Street Collective, shared with permission

    Mario Moore’s Oil Paintings Bridge Past and Present to Spotlight Black Resilience and Style

    June 4, 2025

    ArtHistorySocial Issues

    Kate Mothes

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    In large-scale works in oil, Detroit-based artist Mario Moore taps into the legacy of European painting traditions to create bold portraits exploring the nature of veneration, self-determination, and the continuum of history.

    Moore’s work is currently on view in Beneath Our Feet at Library Street Collective alongside fellow Detroiter LaKela Brown. His new pieces nod to the Dutch and Flemish tradition of devotional painting, particularly religious garland paintings. Within elegant arrangements of flowers and foliage, he highlights Black figures relaxing or tending to gardens.

    “The Patron Saint of Urban Farming” (2025), oil on linen, 72 x 48 inches

    In “Watermelon Man,” a stone altar is surrounded by hibiscus and watermelons, both symbols of resilience. Historically, the latter represented self-sufficiency and freedom for Southern African Americans following Emancipation, but whites flipped the narrative into a stereotypical exemplar of poverty. Moore reclaims the fruit in the spirit of refined 17th-century still-lifes.

    The artist has long drawn on the culture and legacies of both Detroit and the U.S. more broadly through the lens of the Black diaspora. Earlier works like “Pillars” position Black figures in elegant dress within the vast wildernesses of the American frontier, bridging the past to explore how racial divisions continue to shape the present.

    An exhibition last summer at Grand Rapids Art Museum titled Revolutionary Times took his series A New Republic as a starting point, revisiting the history of Black Union soldiers during the Civil War.

    Moore learned that one of his ancestors, who had been enslaved as a child, later enlisted in the Union Army, spurring the artist’s exploration of the seminal mid-19th-century period of conflict and Western colonization. He positions present-day figures in contemporary dress within historical contexts, interrogating political and racial segregations.

    “Watermelon Man” (2025), oil on linen, 51 1/2 x 42 inches

    Through tropes of European painting like a self-portrait of the artist in mirrored reflections and poses in three-quarter profile, Moore renders individuals whose direct, confident gazes and elegant dress invoke Detroit style and pride.

    For Beneath Our Feet, Brown and Moore collaborated on a five-foot-wide bas-relief bronze coin. Each artist completed one side, with Mario’s contribution taking the form of a portrait of Brown. “Her profile echoes the conventional format of traditional American coinage, confronting the historic absence of Black women in national symbolism and positions of authority,” the gallery says. On the opposite side, Brown depicts a bouquet of collard greens symbolic of nourishment and community.

    For this exhibition, Brown and Moore “reflect on the wealth held in the earth beneath us—and the enduring question of who holds the rights to till, own, and shape that land,” says an exhibition statement. Detroit is home to ambitious urban gardening initiatives that aim for local food sovereignty, mirroring the resourcefulness of Black farmers throughout history. The artists “consider land not just as property but as history, inheritance, and possibility,” the gallery says.

    Beneath Our Feet continues through July 30 in Detroit. See more on Moore’s website and Instagram.

    “International Detroit Playa: Sheefy” (2022), oil on linen, 108 x 96 inches

    “These Are Not Yams But They Are Damn Good” (2025), oil on linen, 51 1/2 x 42 inches

    “Creation of a Revolutionary (Helen Moore)” (2023), oil on linen, 76 x 52 inches

    “Black” (2023), oil on linen, 48 x 48 inches

    “Garland of Resilience” (2025), oil on linen, 51 1/2 x 42 inches

    “Birth of Cool” (2023), oil on linen, 72 x 48 inches

    Installation view of ‘LaKela Brown and Mario Moore: Beneath Our Feet’ at Library Street Collective, Detroit

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    Order an Object at the New V&A East Storehouse to Get Up-Close to 5,000 Years of Cultural Heritage

    The Weston Collections Hall at V&A East
    Storehouse, including over 100 mini
    curated displays in the ends and sides of the storage racking. The
    space is anchored by six large-scale objects, including a building section from the now-demolished Robin Hood
    Gardens, a former residential estate in
    Poplar, east London. Photo by Hufton +
    Crow for V&A. All images courtesy of V&A, shared with permission

    Order an Object at the New V&A East Storehouse to Get Up-Close to 5,000 Years of Cultural Heritage

    June 3, 2025

    ArtDesignHistory

    Kate Mothes

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    What do the largest Picasso painting in the world, punky Vivienne Westwood apparel, pins for securing a 17th-century ruff, and a complete Frank Lloyd Wright interior have in common? That’ll be the U.K.’s Victoria and Albert Museum, or the V&A, the world’s largest collection of design and applied and decorative arts.

    In South Kensington, the palatial museum has awed visitors since 1852, and in recent decades, the institution has greatly expanded, with locations like the Young V&A in Bethnal Green, the Wedgwood Collection in Stoke-on-Trent, the ship-like V&A Dundee in Scotland, and the brand new V&A East Storehouse in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

    The largest Picasso work in the world, the 1924 front stage cloth for the Ballets Russes’ production, ‘Le Train Bleu,’ at V&A East Storehouse. Photo by David Parry/PA Media Assignments. Pablo Picasso, “Le Train Bleu front stage cloth” (1924) © The estate of Pablo Picasso

    Spanning 5,000 years of human creativity through hundreds of thousands of objects requires a lot of space. Rather than hiding it all away in a dark warehouse, the new Storehouse takes over a portion of the former 2012 London Olympics Media Centre, providing a purpose-built home for more than 250,000 objects, 350,000 library books, and 1,000 archives from across the V&A’s diverse collections.

    The best part? You can visit! Storehouse hosts workshops, screenings, performances, and pop-up displays of special collections, along with the opportunity to observe conservators at work preserving a wide range of cultural heritage objects.

    Peruse more than 100 curated mini-displays throughout the building, and book in advance to get up-close and personal through the Order an Object experience. Pick any object in storage, and a member of the Collections Access team will assist you in interacting safely with everything from artworks to textiles to musical instruments.

    Plan your visit on the V&A website.

    The 17th-century Agra Colonnade, an extraordinary example of Mughal architecture from the bathhouse at the fort of Agra, visible through the Weston Collections Hall glass floor, and accessible via Object Encounters at V&A East Storehouse. Photo by Hufton + Crow for V&A

    View of Weston Collections Hall, which features more than 100 mini curated displays, at V&A East Storehouse. Photo by Kemka Ajoku for V&A

    Welcome area at V&A East Storehouse with pull-out framed textiles to explore. Photo by Kemka Ajoku for V&A

    Mesh roll-out storage racking at V&A East Storehouse. Available via Object Encounters visits. Photo by Hufton + Crow for V&A

    Multi-purpose conservation studio, visible from the Conservation Overlook at V&A East Storehouse. Photo by David Parry/PA Media Assignments

    View of the Weston Collections Hall at V&A East Storehouse. Photo by David Parry/PA Media Assignments

    Order an Object appointment at V&A East Storehouse. Photo by Bet Bettencourt forV&A Object pictured is Althea McNish, “Rubra” (1961), furnishing fabric

    View of a section of Robin Hood Gardens, a former residential estate in Poplar, east London, at V&A East Storehouse. Photo by David Parry/PA Media Assignments

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    Chinese Herbs Suspended in Resin Usher in Healing in Wen Liu’s Skeletal Sculptures

    “Ouroflora” (2025),
    prescribed herbal medicine, epoxy clay, resin, acrylic, varnish, 34 x 46 x 1 1/2 inches. All images courtesy of Wen Liu, shared with permission

    Chinese Herbs Suspended in Resin Usher in Healing in Wen Liu’s Skeletal Sculptures

    June 3, 2025

    Art

    Grace Ebert

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    “In traditional Chinese medicine, treatments are prescribed through dialogue—how well one can communicate internal pain becomes a condition for healing,” says Wen Liu. Particularly difficult in moments of agony and discomfort, accurately describing our bodily sensations is essential for receiving treatment, and yet, as Liu points out, it’s also an act of translation that can feel nearly impossible while suffering and speaking a second or third language.

    The Shanghai-born artist, who is now based in Brooklyn, draws on this reality for her sculptural works that suspend dried herbs in tinted resin. Liu began incorporating these natural prescriptions into her practice when her father died “as a way to metabolize grief and explore healing through cultural connection,” she adds.

    “In Light, Where Edges Yield” (2025), prescribed herbal medicine, epoxy clay, resin, acrylic, varnish, stainless steel, 65 x 65 x 3 1/2 inches

    Painted in pale purples and greens or silver, the molded-clay structures are architectural and skeletal, while the herbal portions evoke both stained-glass windows often seen in churches and cathedrals and vulnerable membranes of the body. Many works are affixed to the wall, although the human-sized “In Light, Where Edges Yield” stands freely on four legs with a spinal column at its center.

    Liu is intrigued by the way light filters through these surfaces and appears on the other side as a sacred, distorted beam of color. “This refracted illumination offers a sensory language beyond speech, mirroring the project’s exploration of emotions like grief, the processes of healing, and the inadequacy of language in capturing lived experience,” she adds.

    Continually mixing Eastern and Western traditions, Liu instills a sense of harmony and balance in her works. She gravitates toward symmetry and presents her sculptures almost like a Rorschach test, inviting viewers into a delicate dialogue of healing.

    Antidote is on view through June 21 at Gaa Gallery in New York. Liu is currently working toward an exhibition opening this month at Tang Contemporary Art Beijing, and you can explore more on her website and Instagram. (via Young Space)

    “Inarticulate Trace No1.” (2023), prescribed herbal medicine, epoxy clay, resin, paint, UV resistant varnish, 37 x 32 x 1.5 inches

    “Silhouette of a Dose” (2022), prescribed herbal medicine, epoxy clay, resin, paint, UV resistant varnish, 43 x 41 x 1.5 inches

    Detail of “Silhouette of a Dose” (2022), prescribed herbal medicine, epoxy clay, resin, paint, UV resistant varnish, 43 x 41 x 1.5 inches

    Detail of “In Light, Where Edges Yield” (2025), prescribed herbal medicine, epoxy clay, resin, acrylic, varnish, stainless steel, 65 x 65 x 3 1/2 inches

    “Inarticulate Trace No2.” (2024), prescribed herbal medicine, epoxy clay, resin, paint, UV resistant varnish, 40 x 43 x 1.5 inches

    “Inarticulate Trace No3.” (2024), prescribed herbal medicine, epoxy clay, resin, paint, UV resistant varnish, 43.5 x 40.5 x 1.5 inches

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