Sat. October 9, 3-4:30PM, in-person: In order to to comply with the NYC vaccine mandate regulations outlined in the Key to NYC Pass, proof of vaccination and ID required for entry. Please read our COVID Courtesy Code prior to your visit – face coverings are still required for all visitors.
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Join us on Sat. October 9 for an in-person tour of the Fall 2021 exhibitions, led by exhibiting artists Tamara Kostianovsky and Simonette Quamina, and moderated by Smack Mellon’s Curator, Rachel Vera Steinberg.
The artists will discuss the unique material techniques in each of their processes as well as the embodied histories within both of their installations. Tamara Kostianovsky will address the interplay between softness and violence through her sculptural installation of animal carcasses, birds of prey, and tree stumps – each constructed of discarded fabric. Simonette Quamina will discuss the personal and political histories embedded in her rich, wall-sized graphite works.
Bios:
Tamara Kostianovsky was born in Jerusalem, Israel in 1974, and grew up in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the National School of Fine Arts “Prilidiano Pueyrredón” in Buenos Aires and a Master of Fine Arts degree from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA. Kostianovsky is the recipient of distinguished awards including a fellowship from the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, and grants from New York Foundation for the Arts and the Pollock-Krasner Foundation.
Her work has been exhibited at venues such as El Museo del Barrio, NY; The Jewish Museum, NY; Fuller Craft Museum, MA; Urban Institute for Contemporary Art, MI; The University of the Arts, PA; Nevada Museum of Art, NV, and many others. She has presented solo and group exhibitions in Italy, France, and Argentina.
Among many others, Kostianovsky’s artwork has been featured and reviewed in prestigious publications such as The New York Times, The Boston Globe, WBUR, The Village Voice, Marie Claire, Repubblica, El Diario New York, Colossal, and Hyperallergic.
The artist lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.
Simonette Quamina was born in Ontario Canada, and spent her early childhood living between South America, the Caribbean, and New York City. She earned her Bachelor of Arts from the City College of New York and a Master of Fine Arts in Printmaking from the Rhode Island School of Design. She is the recipient of the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts Studio Program in New York City, the recipient of the 2017-2018 Provincetown Fine Arts Works Center Residency and the 2017 Salem Art Works Fellowship as well as a current 2020 Queen Sonja Print Award nominee. Her work has shown both nationally and internationally. It has been acquired for private and public collections, including the Fleet Library’s special collections. Her recent group exhibitions include Embody at The Mandeville Gallery, Figuring the Floral at Wave Hill Glyndor Gallery, Artist I steal from at Gallerie Thaddaeus Ropac in London, Coded at the Boston Center of the Arts, Mills Gallery, and Bathing at Planthouse Gallery in New York City. She maintains an active studio in New York City and is an Assistant Professor of Printmaking at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design.
Image: Tamara Kostianovsky, The Conference of the Birds, 2021. Discarded clothing, wood, acrylic nails, 48 x 94 x 7 inches.