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Hontu, Shen Zhou—van Gogh II, 1998-1999 Oil on canvas, 96 x 50 inches. Courtesy of the artist. |
As a reflection of its commitment to the enormous cultural diversity of Queens, the QMA presents an exhibition of forty artists and artists groups (for specific artists, see Dig Deeper) who live or work in Queens while maintaining strong connections to their native countries. Some of the artists were born elsewhere in the U.S. and now live in Queens.
Multiculturalism is an everyday reality on the streets of Queens, which is the most culturally diverse county in the nation. Over 50% of the households in Queens are headed by people not born in the US and close to 160 languages are spoken in the borough. Queens International recognizes and highlights the borough's residents as one of its most distinctive resources.
Works in the exhibition include painting, photography, sculpture, video and web projects that reflect the global concerns of this group of local artists, whose families and professional activities can easily mean that they spend a portion of the year in Bogota, Beijing, or Lahore. Each artist has ample room in which to express his or her aesthetic as every nook and cranny of the Museum is devoted to a wide range of media and modes of expression. While the styles and techniques vary greatly, many of the artists refer in some way to their often complex mixtures of cultural identities either in the concerns that their work addresses or in some aspect of their aesthetic language. See what your style is by creating a mandala design in Just Add Ink or simply choose a lesson from the Lesson Web.
Here are some of the artists that participated in Queens International:
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Augusto Arbizo: Working either on canvas or over a polaroid photograph, the Filipino-born artist creates nature-based abstractions with layers of dots and strokes in web patterns around a central core of light. They evoke spiders' webs and snowflakes. |
 Augusto Arbizo Snowfall I (detail), 2002 Acrylic on canvas, 70 x 52 inches. Courtesy of the artist |
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Marietta Ganapin: Using cutouts from art exhibition catalogues and brochures, Ganapin creates intricate collages in a circular format. The artist uses an image reproduction of an art work that "I have actually seen several times….each finished piece is a memento of a very personal experience." They suggest kaleidoscope patterns, decorative plates, church rose windows or flowers. They strongly evoke mandalas, in that they are round, symmetrical and have a central focus in each design. |
 Marietta Ganapin Untitled (Untitled [Clown Creature], Minnie Evans), 2001 Collage, 9 x 9 inches. Courtesy of the artist |
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Eric Hongisto: On a 40 foot curved wall, Hongisto paints organic shapes in bright colors. Reminiscent of cellular structures, these elements seem to float in and out of an indefinable space. There are trompe l'oeil shadows around some of the objects, accentuating their movement in and out of space. As the viewer moves closer to and around the wall, the identity of these organic shapes seem to undulate and swim before his or her eyes. |
 Eric Hongisto Possibilities, and Potentialities, 2002 Acrylic, gouache, and encaustic spheres on wall, approx. 12 x 50 feet. Courtesy of the artist (photo by Eileen Costa) |
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Zhang Hongtu: Taking famous Chinese landscapes, which contain mountain and water scenes, Zhang Hongtu paints them in the style of Monet, Van Gogh, or Cezanne. The final result is an amalgam of Asian imagery and 19th century Impressionism and Post- Impressionism. |
Zhang Hongtu Shitao - van Gogh III, 1999-2000 Oil on Canvas, 68 x 30. Courtesy of the artist |
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Jena Kim: The Korean-born artist approaches her paintings as compositions of "sound form." According to Kim, "the forms interact as symbols of musical elements." She uses lines, shapes and colors as they evoke rhythm, tone and melody. |
 Jena Kim Untitled (installation view), 2002 Adhesive tapes, contact sheets, and paints, approx. 18 x 12 feet, 45 feet long (variable height). Courtesy of the artist (photo by Eileen Costa) |
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Crysta Lunsford: In an effort to document both the tastes and social status of family members, Lunsford creates paintings which combine floor plans with collaged and painted elements describing the decoration of the homes of her parents and grandparents. Her aim is to show that the way a home is decorated relates to the economic status of its residents. |
 Crysta Lunsford Floorplan (detail), 2002 Oil and needle woven wool/silk on linen, 36 x 24 inches. Courtesy of the artist |
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Arthur Simms: Simms, a Jamaican-born sculptor, uses found objects such as bottles, rocks, wire and scrap metal to create his mixed-media works which combine references to both Caribbean and American culture. |
 Arthur Simms He Looked Like a Ska Prince, 2000 Wire, fan, wood, skateboard, and screws, 19 x 34 x 21 inches. Courtesy of the artist |
If you'd like further information, go to Dig Deeper.
