Like a Striking Simile
An exhibition of work in dialog with Helen Hawley
ALL (Arts + Literature Laboratory), Madison, WI, 2016
Artists Helen Hawley and Chele Isaac once maintained studios one block apart in downtown Madison. They each work across a variety of media and over time noticed an uncanny simultaneity of ideas, images and insights. Curious about the recurring and serendipitous parallels, they decided to explore the source and terrain of this shared language with a collaborative exhibition. Throughout “Like a Striking Simile” Hawley and Isaac explore a fascination for how, under careful observation and consideration, the materials and objects often overlooked in daily life seem to suggest something else entirely. They produced their sculptures, painting, and videos independently and allowed the work of the exhibition to evolve in a sort of call and response to each other’s sketches and experiments.
