Letting in the light at Five Myles, by Diana Rickard

Try to imagine a world without windows, how uninhabitable homes and works spaces would become, how menacing and dystopian buildings would seem from the outside. Windows are an indispensable element in any human abode, an architectural necessity without which interiors becomes oppressive. For those of us inside, they frame fragments of the outer world, letting it in, and for those on the outside they may offer a glimpse into how others live. Depending on the light, they may reflect the beholder, and contain simultaneous, overlapping visions. Selections from Meridith McNeal’s ongoing series of paintings, Inside Outside Windowphilia are on view at Five Myles in Crown Heights, juxtaposed with vibrant student art inspired by this work. The exhibition, The Way We See It, Meridith McNeal and ART YARD students, is on view through October 9th.

Since a loved one’s wrongful conviction, McNeal has been investigating the layers of meaning that imbue windows as they let in and keep out, particularly in the specific and terrifying sense of being on one side or the other of incarceration, and she has created an extensive body of work exploring these themes. Her watercolors are remarkable for their rendition of clear and reflecting surfaces and the surprising ways they re-frame various frames and play with the position of the viewer. Her interior, looking-out paintings in the show include the quiet and haunting Inside Out Quarantine Fire Escape depicting a fire escape and its shadow on the wall in hues of grey and cream, and its reflection on gleaming hardwood floors. Another interior, Inside Outside Recovery Rain evokes the post-impressionists as a green and pink garden view is streaked with and dappled by rain. Looking-in paintings from the series include storefront windows in Red Hook and Atlantic Avenue, scenes that capture the artist’s gaze, the wares on display, and reflections of streetlights and buildings, the world refracted and multiplied and captured all at once.

Student work in The Way We See It was created during ART YARD’s 2021 summer session which kicked off their Year to Heal and Restore. Students met on Zoom and in person in the gallery space where they learned a variety of watercolor techniques and how to approach large-format paintings, using McNeal’s work as a jumping off point. The life-size window paintings display the individual standpoints of each student, from where they face out to where they face in. They bring lightness, air and depth into the large black box space, and the dark walls add intensity to the paintings while personal and cultural histories and emotional states enter a dynamic dialogue with each other. Delphine Levenson’s My Window of Vines, in the palest of blues, includes multicolored tassel-like vines that ornament a trellised window. On the side, in sharp contrast to the dreamy hues is a small, sharp gold lock, a reminder of the need for protection. Akash Wilmot’s My Window of Peace includes deeper blues on the walls around a window which frames an urban scene, graffitied buildings and fire escapes under a large globe of the sun. The lines have wiggle and swagger, making the painting active and alive. Kevin Anderson’s enigmatic My Window of Mystery places a window in the middle of a landscape. It depicts a staircase leading to a mysterious center. This painting uses primary color dramatically, and the composition is reminiscent of mystical iconography. Sigrid Dolan’s My Window of Shush looks in on an empty classroom and silence is made palpable by the softness of her palette, rendering a strained, controlled moment in time. Elizabeth Morales’ My Window of Liberty? emphasizes being locked out or locked in, with the artist looking out at a floral burst of fireworks while a pained ghost of a figure looks in, imploringly, clutching bars. Other paintings on view include Zahir Prudent’s My Window of Memory, Robin Grant’s My Window of Busy Stillness, August Levenson’s My Window of Blissful Ignorance, and Sarah Gumgumji’s My Window of Motifs, as well as teaching artist Reg Lewis’ My Window of Perception and Perspective, and teaching artist Jacob Rath’s My Window of Zoom Out.

The Way We See It includes a table of portfolios of ART YARD student work that I found myself getting lost in. Pouring over the books I was impressed by one sophisticated work after another. Some of these are inspired by teaching artist Reg Lewis’ poem/meditation “Shhh vs. The Courtroom in the Head (AKA) Stressing Less”, including mixed media collages such as Karla Prichett’s using pen and ink, strips of typed text, and sparse use of color in a Kandinsky-esque composition; Sarah Gumgumji’s colored drawings of large, cartoonish exclamation points on a page of the New York Times announcing Covid-19 deaths; and Marilyn August’s meditative cut paper burst of lotus petals. The range of work on display in the portfolios speaks to the quality of art education and the commitment of the students to grapple social and political issues and personal struggles through both simple and complex modes of visual expression. Also included in the portfolio is work by Thea Adams Bey, Zeke Brokaw, Sigrid Dolan, Robin Grant, Reg Lewis, August Levenson, Delphine Levenson, Madison Mack, Meridith McNeal, Eden Moore, Elizabeth Morales, Kayla Morales, Zahir Prudent, Jacob Rath, Nayarit Tineo, and Akash Wilmont.

ART YARD offers education programs for kids, teens, adults, and practicing artists. Through the act of looking outside oneself, the creative act fosters a sense of civic responsibility and an awareness of social justice. Instructors are a stylistically, culturally, and generationally diverse group of working artists. More information is available at www.artyardbklyn.org.

Five Myles is located at 558 St. Johns Place. Hours are Thursday – Sunday, 1-6. More information is available at www.fivemyles.org.