White Columns Online #22:
A Good Jawn
curated by Brittany Adeline King

November 19, 2022–January 27, 2023 Online
A green sheet of paper printed with various circular shadows resembling objects. The shapes are differentiated by their ranging tones of green.

Erin Woodbrey
The Second Week of October, 2020.
Shadowgram Anthotype,
spinach on paper
60.9 × 45.7 cm / 24 × 18 in. Courtesy of the artist.

The face of a wide-eyed woman has been duplicated, resized, cut up and collaged into a shape resembling a flower, or the sun. The “petals” are made of a smaller cutout of the woman's face. The center is made up of the face cut into a semi-circle, with one half inverted, along with two other smaller faces the same size as the other petals.

Shertise Solano
The Black Sun II, 2020.
Collage on paper
12 × 8 in.
Courtesy of the artist.

A square piece of wood that has been painted a deep reddish-brown and carved with three ripples flowing from left to right. Four irregular silver circles have been placed opposite each other at the midway point of each side of the square.

James Lewis
The Sound of Pollen (Planetary), 2020.
Wood, paint, lead
50 cm × 38 cm × 3 cm
Courtesy of the artist and Galerie Hubert Winter.

An abstract painting on a nine-sided canvas that resembles the shape of a ship viewed from above. Shades of aubergine, navy, and white are painted atop a dark teal background. A small brown figure in the painting resembles a rowboat.

Eleanor Conover
Although the Sun, 2021.
Oil, bleach, dye, and graphite on sewn linen with beveled pine
45 × 35 in.
Courtesy of the artist.

An abstract depiction of a jacket sculpted in metal. The jacket is decorated with darker metallic floral cutouts, as well as the shape of a necktie down the center of the work.

Elly Reitman
Conductor: Floral Jacket, 2020.
Steel, stainless steel, corten steel, rare earth magnets
42 × 40 × 1 in.
Courtesy of the artist

An image of collaged paper layered atop one another. The paper is painted with broad brush strokes in varying shades of magenta, rust, orange, and, at the bottom, mustard yellow. A yellowish light glows faintly from behind the work.

Michele Foyer
Flex-Flux: Touch + Go, 2018.
Acrylic, flashe, ink, paper, light reflected from painted back side
20 × 16 × 2 in.
Courtesy of the artist. Photo: John Janca

A piece of plywood covered in a pearlescent material is shot through with iridescent rippling. A slight pink tinge is noticeable beneath the marbling.

Mary Bucci McCoy
Vivo, 2021.
Acrylic, iridescent pigment, marble dust on gessoed plywood
8.5 × 10.5 × 1 in.
Courtesy of the artist.

An abstract textile work made up of a mixture of dirty red carpet, a chartreuse upholstery fabric, and chair stuffing roughly sewn together with yellow thread. Loose stuffing is seeping through the seams and the unsewn bottom of the piece.

Amanda C. Mathis
Memory Study 27, 2019.
Upholstery, carpet, chair stuffing, thread
12 1/4 × 8 1/2 × 1 3/4 in. Courtesy of the artist.

A square-shaped light blue sculpture made of woven strips of cardboard. The plaster coating gives the work an uneven, rough texture.

Abby Cheney
Ice Tray, 2020.
Cardboard, plaster, acrylic
10 × 10 × 2 in.
Courtesy of the artist.

Eight pieces of brightly dyed woven cloth squares laid out in a checkered design are sewn together by their corners. Each square has frayed hems.

Garth Swanson
Untitled (checkerboard), 2018.
Oil and dye on handwoven canvas (fully selvaged)
24 × 14 in.
Courtesy of the artist.

A pair of leather mule slippers with a dark blue shearling lining and footbed. Gnarled steel spikes emerge from the interior of the shoe.

Danielle Giudici Wallis
Black and Blue, 2021.
Leather, shearling, cork, forged steel
3.5 × 8 × 9.5 in.
Courtesy of the artist.

An elongated rectangle-shaped aluminum frame is covered with a metallic nylon fabric. Diagonal exposed seams are seen across the fabric. To the upper right of the sculpture, a rectangular piece of nylon sticks out from the work.

Laura Hunt
Untitled, 2018.
Nylon, hand-sewn and stretched over aluminum frame
60 × 20 in.
Courtesy of the artist.

Participating Artists

Abby Cheney
Eleanor Conover
Michele Foyer
Laura Hunt
James Lewis
Amanda C. Mathis
Mary Bucci McCoy
Elly Reitman
Shertise Solano
Garth Swanson
Danielle Giudici Wallis
Erin Woodbrey

Exhibition Description

“A Good Jawn” comprises twelve works chosen from White Columns’ Curated Artist Registry.

With the beloved North Philly expression heavy on my mind during my selection process, the title of the exhibition and the warmth it sparks in describing the all-encompassing; in this case optimistic, was deeply felt in putting together this show.

In homage to the liveliness the phrase represents, “A Good Jawn” focuses on the narratives that arise from the abstraction of each included work.

If you release the idea of the essential self, throw it naked into the surf and let the sea carry it away, then everything changes. Without it, masks take on a new expanse of possibility. They can conceal, yes, but as the magician says, they can also clarify what is true – in precisely the same way a story can tell you something better than stark facts ever could.

— Akwaeke Emezi’s “Dear Senthuran” (2021)

Thank you Violet, Tamara, Erin and Matthew for the opportunity and support.

Brittany Adeline King is an artist and curator living and working in New York. 

This exhibition is the twenty-second in a series of online exhibitions curated exclusively from White Columns’ Curated Artist Registry.

A green sheet of paper printed with various circular shadows resembling objects. The shapes are differentiated by their ranging tones of green.
The face of a wide-eyed woman has been duplicated, resized, cut up and collaged into a shape resembling a flower, or the sun. The “petals” are made of a smaller cutout of the woman's face. The center is made up of the face cut into a semi-circle, with one half inverted, along with two other smaller faces the same size as the other petals.
A square piece of wood that has been painted a deep reddish-brown and carved with three ripples flowing from left to right. Four irregular silver circles have been placed opposite each other at the midway point of each side of the square.
An abstract painting on a nine-sided canvas that resembles the shape of a ship viewed from above. Shades of aubergine, navy, and white are painted atop a dark teal background. A small brown figure in the painting resembles a rowboat.
An abstract depiction of a jacket sculpted in metal. The jacket is decorated with darker metallic floral cutouts, as well as the shape of a necktie down the center of the work.
An image of collaged paper layered atop one another. The paper is painted with broad brush strokes in varying shades of magenta, rust, orange, and, at the bottom, mustard yellow. A yellowish light glows faintly from behind the work.
A piece of plywood covered in a pearlescent material is shot through with iridescent rippling. A slight pink tinge is noticeable beneath the marbling.
An abstract textile work made up of a mixture of dirty red carpet, a chartreuse upholstery fabric, and chair stuffing roughly sewn together with yellow thread. Loose stuffing is seeping through the seams and the unsewn bottom of the piece.
A square-shaped light blue sculpture made of woven strips of cardboard. The plaster coating gives the work an uneven, rough texture.
Eight pieces of brightly dyed woven cloth squares laid out in a checkered design are sewn together by their corners. Each square has frayed hems.
A pair of leather mule slippers with a dark blue shearling lining and footbed. Gnarled steel spikes emerge from the interior of the shoe.
An elongated rectangle-shaped aluminum frame is covered with a metallic nylon fabric. Diagonal exposed seams are seen across the fabric. To the upper right of the sculpture, a rectangular piece of nylon sticks out from the work.

Erin Woodbrey,
The Second Week of October, 2020.
Shadowgram Anthotype,
spinach on paper.
60.9 × 45.7 cm / 24 × 18 in. Courtesy of the artist. (A green sheet of paper printed with various circular shadows resembling objects. The shapes are differentiated by their ranging tones of green.)

Shertise Solano, The Black Sun II, 2020.
Collage on paper. 12 × 8 in.
Courtesy of the artist. (The face of a wide-eyed woman has been duplicated, resized, cut up and collaged into a shape resembling a flower, or the sun. The “petals” are made of a smaller cutout of the woman’s face. The center is made up of the face cut into a semi-circle, with one half inverted, along with two other smaller faces the same size as the other petals.)

James Lewis,
The Sound of Pollen (Planetary), 2020.
Wood, paint, lead.
50 cm × 38 cm × 3 cm.
Courtesy of the artist and Galerie Hubert Winter. (A square piece of wood that has been painted a deep reddish-brown and carved with three ripples flowing from left to right. Four irregular silver circles have been placed opposite each other at the midway point of each side of the square.)

Eleanor Conover, Although the Sun, 2021.
Oil, bleach, dye, and graphite on sewn linen with beveled pine. 45 × 35 in.
Courtesy of the artist. (An abstract painting on a nine-sided canvas that resembles the shape of a ship viewed from above. Shades of aubergine, navy, and white are painted atop a dark teal background. A small brown figure in the painting resembles a rowboat.)

Elly Reitman,
Conductor: Floral Jacket, 2020.
Steel, stainless steel, corten steel, rare earth magnets.
42 × 40 × 1 in.
Courtesy of the artist. (An abstract depiction of a jacket sculpted in metal. The jacket is decorated with darker metallic floral cutouts, as well as the shape of a necktie down the center of the work.)

Michele Foyer,
Flex-Flux: Touch + Go, 2018. Acrylic, flashe, ink, paper, light reflected from painted back side.
20 × 16 × 2 in.
Courtesy of the artist. Photo: John Janca (An image of collaged paper layered atop one another. The paper is painted with broad brush strokes in varying shades of magenta, rust, orange, and, at the bottom, mustard yellow. A yellowish light glows faintly from behind the work.)

Mary Bucci McCoy,
Vivo, 2021.
Acrylic, iridescent pigment, marble dust on gessoed plywood.
8.5 × 10.5 × 1 in.
Courtesy of the artist. (A piece of plywood covered in a pearlescent material is shot through with iridescent rippling. A slight pink tinge is noticeable beneath the marbling)

Amanda C. Mathis, Memory Study 27, 2019. Upholstery, carpet, chair stuffing, thread.
12 1/4 × 8 1/2 × 1 3/4 in. Courtesy of the artist. (An abstract textile work made up of a mixture of dirty red carpet, a chartreuse upholstery fabric, and chair stuffing roughly sewn together with yellow thread. Loose stuffing is seeping through the seams and the unsewn bottom of the piece)

Abby Cheney, Ice Tray, 2020.
Cardboard, plaster, acrylic.
10 × 10 × 2 in.
Courtesy of the artist. (A square-shaped light blue sculpture made of woven strips of cardboard. The plaster coating gives the work an uneven, rough texture.)

Garth Swanson, Untitled (checkerboard), 2018.
Oil and dye on handwoven canvas (fully selvaged).
24 × 14 in.
Courtesy of the artist. (A checkerboard-shaped weaving with square holes spaced between eight brightly painted and dyed woven squares. The uncut ends of weft threads hang from the edges of the piece.)

Danielle Giudici Wallis,
Black and Blue, 2021.
Leather, shearling, cork, forged steel.
3.5 × 8 × 9.5 in.
Courtesy of the artist. (A pair of leather mule slippers with a dark blue shearling lining and footbed. Gnarled steel spikes emerge from the interior of the shoe.)

Laura Hunt,
Untitled, 2018.
Nylon, hand-sewn and stretched over aluminum frame.
60 × 20 in.
Courtesy of the artist. (An elongated rectangle-shaped aluminum frame is covered with a metallic nylon fabric. Diagonal exposed seams are seen across the fabric. To the upper right of the sculpture, a rectangular piece of nylon sticks out from the work.)