“It is better to live in a state of impermanence than in one of finality.”

-Gaston Bachelard, The Poetics of Space

The spaces where we live our lives possess a sacredness to which we may not always be attuned, and yet we are aware in some deep level of our consciousness of the divine energy that resonates from every room, hallway, armoire, corner, and nook. The map of our existence is drawn on these spaces, reflected back to us as we move through them day in and day out. I am particularly aware of this as I turn through the pages of Gaston Bachelard’s pivotal work, The Poetics of Space, and it reminds me to pay more deference to the everyday, the mundane, the profound, yet often ignored places where I commonly exist.

Melissa McGill sat down to chat with us about her show, Currents, which ran in the fall of 2022 at Totah Gallery. McGill maintains a simultaneous studio practice and public art practice. The title refers to the movement of water and nods to current events in time. The works ranged across mediums from video to painting to mural and sculptural, all of them reflecting the theme of water. To hear more, listen to the complete interview.

Arin Dwihartanto Sunaryo joined us from his studio in Indonesia to discuss his two-person show, External Entrails, at Silverlens Gallery in New York. The work in this show, called liniresin, resemble rock that might be found in an archaeological dig. Sunaryo began using resin in 2008 to create 2D work. As the resin piled up underneath the table where he worked, it became a record of all the work he had created over the years. To hear more about this unusual artwork, listen to the complete interview.

Read the summary of this week's interviews and resources.