SHOW THE FOG IS RISING
Ilona Drożdzik is pleased to announce The Fog is Rising, an exhibition of recent works by Helen Quinn and Marilia Destot. In conjunction with the launch of her newest fashion collection, Drożdzik has partially transformed her eponymous shop into a gallery space.
Through their respective media - photography and collage for Destot, sculpture, pottery and mixed-media drawing for Quinn - the artists have created imagery that, as an ensemble, conjures an imaginary world reminiscent of folktales. It also complements Drożdzik’s apparel, creating a cohesive environment of understated hues and minimalist aesthetic.
Destot’s works, from the series Memoryscapes, depict hazy, mysterious seascapes and mountain tops collaged together from fragments of her photographs. She transforms organic landscapes into imagined ones, akin to the way storytellers borrow from their memory to weave new narratives. Ocean waves, beaches, and mountains are recorded and revisited across various atmospheric conditions, tears cutting through them. A reflection of the artist’s inner self and environmental concerns, they shift from poetic and calm to ominous and turbulent.
This scenery sets the stage for Quinn’s paper maché sculptures and glazed pottery. A swan, a badger, a bear and other creatures appear as the magical inhabitants of Destot’s landscapes. Inspired by the mastheads of Viking ships, the artist sees the animal heads as protectors - benign spirits guiding voyagers through the stormy sea to safety. An avid traveler and observer of iconography from wide-ranging cultures and traditions, Quinn intentionally references Norse ships and Oaxacan artifacts in her three-dimensional work, as well as in the three mixed-media drawings on view.
Central to the show is the chromatic restraint of both artists, who each imbue gray, the color of fog, with expressive and narrative possibilities. While gray may be perceived as a somber non-hue, for Quinn and Destot it is a fertile starting point, the incipit of a story. Gray also elegantly ties Destot and Quinn’s works to Drożdzik’s designs, highlighting their aesthetic affinity and making them part of the same world. Long-time friends and collaborators, the artists have been behind Drożdzik sophisticated lookbooks for the past 10 years - Destot photographing the clothing and Quinn designing the sets. The Fog is Rising is a multi-disciplinary tribute to a long-standing friendship and ongoing creative collaboration. Fog is rising, but it will lift, leaving way for new adventures to unfurl.
About the artists
Marilia Destot is a French photographer, living and working in New York City. She has exhibited widely in Europe and the US. Her institutional exhibitions include les Rencontres de la Photographie in Arles, the French Institute in NYC, Le Lieu de La Photographie in Lorient (2021), the Festival du Regard in Cergy-Pontoise (2021), and Kaunas 2022 European Capital of Culture, Lithuania (2022). Her first photography book titled La Promesse was published by Éditions Filigranes in 2020, leading to a solo show at The Blanc Gallery in New York City in 2022. Her work is part of several private and public collections such as the National Collection of France and the regional collections of Lorient and Grenoble in France.
Helen Quinn lives and works in Queens, New York. Her most recent solo show A Natural Arrangement of Remarkable Teeth took place at Kipnz Gallery in Walton, New York in Spring 2023. Her work has been exhibited internationally including the Czech Republic and Norway. She is the recipient of two New Works Grants from the Queens Council of the Arts in 2020 and 2022. She has attended numerous residencies including a year-long program in Japan with the Henry Luce Foundation and more recently at Poco a Poco in Oaxaca, Mexico. She holds a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art.