REBECCA NIEDERLANDER

CURATOR’S NOTES 

Rebecca Niederlander is incredibly thoughtful and intentional, yet she uses her emotional sensibilities to create improvised works of wonder. Oh, and she is seriously intelligent. I first discovered her work driving home from the gallery. Driving in traffic along Jefferson Blvd I had the pleasure of first seeing her work being installed outside of The Landing Gallery and all I could imagine was, is that permanent or just for a show? It was ambitious and simply fascinating. It was one of the few times I looked forward to hitting traffic, so I could catch that masterpiece every day. It actually brought me calm and comfort. (A fuller take on the coordinated wellspring of synergistic bliss and the constellations (three is a magic number)is about my kid and my family. The individual triangle echoes our three-person family, then the collections of triangles echo the lived experiences of us all interconnecting with others, as well as the constellation Orion (my son’s name) with its three stars in the belt and then all the constellations across all the universes.)

Admittedly, I had no idea who she was, until the opening of Lisa Diane Wedgeworth’s PassionPower Prayer here last year. Rebecca came out to support her friend and we got into a lively discussion about art, abstraction, texture, then on to so many social issues. With Lisa’s ​​prompting, Rebecca showed me what had been her installation outside the gallery. I knew at that moment that we had to figure out something to do, at some point.

Over the course of several months, there were various studio visits, zoom meetings, and just conversations. What I found was, that the more I listened, the more I could hopefully tap into the soulful breadth of Rebecca’s work. I wanted to honor this woman and her life work. But don’t get me wrong, this did not come effortlessly.

This is what I refer to as creative tension. We rescheduled Rebecca’s show several times. There were misfired emails that we did not communicate well. I stopped listening. A hard reset was needed and it took a team of us, led by my partner Darryl and everyone’s favorite, Eva Chimento, to go see Rebecca and gain clarity on the vision if we were still moving forward.

Rebecca is very direct. She basically said, “I’m here, all you have to do is communicate with me.” Sounds simple, I know. But oftentimes you are moving in so many directions, that you neglect that which is most important to you. While I know she still had some reservations, she was still willing to move forward.

The Devil’s Workshop best exemplifies the relationship we have developed, between artist and curator. It is about building a community with like-minded people who want to create a dialogue of forgiveness and compassion.

We as creatives have chosen a path that, in many ways, chose us. Whether because of trauma or from the actual exposure to creativity from a young age, the goal is usually the same: to uplift humanity, spark conversation and while we may come from different communities, we see something in one another that says yes, I want to be a part of their tribe and I hope they will want me to be a part of their tribe.

The Devil’s Workshop is a tribe. Come see what it is about. Perhaps you’ll want to be a part of it, as well. Maybe it’ll bring you some calm and comfort, too...

TERRELL TILFORD
Curator, Creative Director.