OddKin: Kate McNamara, Judd Schiffman & Scott Alario
This past weekend, I had the great pleasure of attending an independently curated show by the Department’s Visual Resource Curator, Kate McNamara. This show, entitled OddKin, featured two members of Providence College Art and Art History faculty and staff, Judd Schiffman and Scott Alario, respectively. “OddKin”, is a phrase developed by ecofeminist Donna Haraway in which humans find familial ties outside their own blood but possibly outside their own kind. In other words, through means of survival humans find security and spirituality through all beings of this Earth.
As a whole, the works were beautiful and the different artists’ approach to this central theme of “OddKin” compliment one another for an intriguing showcase. Ceramics professor, Judd Schiffman, created a wall sculpture entitled, The Self That Touches All Edges in which Mothman, a humanoid creature, is seen wrapping its arms around a tree oddly with human eyes. The craftsmanship and color choice leave the viewer feeling ethereal, as they see a love and kinship too perfect for this dismal world. Studio Art Technician, Scott Alario, presents an arrangement of three prints held by neodymium-glazed ceramic frames. These works include, Marguerite & Painted Turtle, Mooni & Marguerite (Worm), and Mooni & Marguerite (Intrepidation). The presentation alone is perplexing and interesting to the viewer due to its unconventional materials. The soft lilac frames hold the inverted color prints in which his family are exploring nature. They extend their own love and kin to the others of this world, possibly in hopes of making the world a better place.
McNamara’s show was recently reviewed in The Boston Globe by Globe Correspondent Cate McQuaid. She finds that, “ “OddKin” doesn’t deny the terrible state we’ve gotten ourselves into. Acknowledging the spiritual paucity of ownership and domination, it finds bounty in the smaller sweetness of sharing” (Cate McQuaid, The Boston Globe). I myself thoroughly enjoyed experiencing OddKin that celebrates our relativity and allyship with all beings, a phenomenon we so often forget in our divided world.
You can find the Boston Globe article linked below! Congratulations to Kate, Judd, and Scott!
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/06/07/arts/pop-up-show-east-providence-beckons-with-oddkin/
At 89 Valley St., East Providence, through July 10. www.katemmcnamara.com/news. Open by appointment: oddkin4@gmail.com.
Posted by Zari Apodaca ’23
