Elena Kaul- Curatorial Rationale

I have always had a passion for discovering different ways that we can take care of ourselves and others, whether it be political actions we can take or trying new practices. Because of this, I wanted my theme for my exhibition to be wellness. My body of work explores the different sides of wellness both mental and physical. I wanted to create pieces that develop social commentary around mental and physical wellbeing. I hope my work will spark discussion about the effects that the environment, society, and politics have on a person's overall well-being. The first step of bringing awareness to wellness is by breaking the stigma around different illnesses. Through pieces of my work, I was able to reduce stigma and increase visibility around illnesses like depression, anxiety, and more visible illnesses. This theme also allowed me to explore what wellness looks like through the lens of a global pandemic, not only the physical effects but also the mental. My work creates the question of how protecting our physical health has affected our mental health. I could convey these subjects of wellness through a wide variety of art like media mix, photography, acrylic painting, and sculpture. Each different art form displays a different meaning of the work so that the audience can explore all the sides of the term “wellness”.

Some of my artwork explores the motif of shame. More specifically the shame of hiding from your illness. In “Get Well Soon” and “Shower Thoughts” you can see this motif of shame. Both pieces discuss the stigma around health conditions and how it can lead to people feeling ashamed for their illness. “Get Well Soon” discusses hiding visible illness and “Shower Thoughts'' conveys how people mask their mental illnesses. Through the motif of shame, I was able to connect the stigma associated with different illnesses.

Three of my works in this exhibition have collages incorporated. By using elements of society (such as magazines, newspapers, etc) I was able to make these works more impactful. I could bring the modern world into my work analyzing how current issues, politics, and ways of living can affect our well-being. The year 2020 has taken a toll on our wellbeing and because of this, I have reflected on the ways the outside forces play a role in my wellness. In my piece “It Has Been a Long Year” I wanted to encapsulate that by using New Yorker magazine article titles from the past few months and collaging them on a computer screen. The computer is set in a room where outside the window you can see “the world is on fire” commenting on the idea that it can be hard to take care of yourself in the midst of crisis and catastrophe.

The gallery begins with mental wellness. Therefore it will begin with the mixed media piece “Shower Thoughts”. When looking at “Shower Thoughts'' as a whole you can see the theme of wellness. Through the connection between the images of neurons (present in the collage) and the bathroom setting. It will help create a smooth transition to the next works “Open Mind” and “Dizzy” which are both pieces that also explore mental wellness. The exhibition then segues into the discussion of stigma with “Get Well Soon”. “Get Well Soon” is an interruption of stigma. It tells the story of how people hide their illnesses because of stigma. The goal of the piece is to make the audiences start to think about how stigma affects our wellness. The audience then sees a more specific example of stigma surrounding visible illnesses in “Pimple Pumps”. “Pimple Pumps” is followed by “Smile”. “Smile” will act as the bridge between “Pimple Pumps” and the last work of the show “It Has Been a Long Year”. The final piece has a connection with the audience because it is a piece that some can sympathize with. “It Has Been a Long Year” is a visual representation of the year 2020 and how the state of the world impacted our wellness. I created this exhibition in the hopes that my audience starts to explore the term wellness and they begin to think about outside and internal factors that affect their wellness journey.