“Grow Gallery” is on view and open to the public in Watertown, MA at the intersection of Arsenal Street and School Street, on the Arsenal on the Charles Campus, from July 10 through October 31, 2017. See it in person? Let us know by tagging your photos #MCAgrowgallery
“There is tremendous growth in the Watertown Arsenal corridor. With growth comes construction. We began brainstorming ways to engage with the community while construction is ongoing and the Grow Gallery installation concept was born.” says Director of Exhibitions Kimberly Thompson Panay.
The Grow Gallery installation is comprised of paintings by artists Diego Velez and Jana Charl, which are enlarged, reproduced and installed along fences on the Arsenal on the Charles campus. Each piece is five feet high and extends 36 feet long. Roberta Miller, Executive Director of the Mosesian Center for the Arts, notes “this is the perfect opportunity to go beyond the Center’s walls and share a curated art experience with the broader community.”
Diego describes his painting as a kingdom of endless wonder. “El Rey, or the King, is seen in all of his splendor surrounded by his subordinates and characters that demonstrate conformism to ancestors and royals.”
While Jana explains that “Sunset is my stylized female form with an inset to serve as a signature and bars of color to act as placeholders inviting viewer’s to use their own words to narrate the story.” She creates texture by mixing and applying pigments on the canvas in addition to disrupting the surface by cutting, weaving, and sewing strips of painted canvas into it.
