"CLOSE ENOUGH" Cathy Ellis in Support of CHIRLA
The characteristic I love most about painting is the sense of discovery. That with the right kind of eyes, you can literally follow a painter’s moves- a brushstroke layers on top of the one that preceded it, in turn creating the foundation for the one that follows.
This process of action then reaction is at the core of Cathy’s work (which I unilaterally adore.) Her paintings record the moment to moment messiness of trying to understand the world around you. Insight never comes easy, and Cathy is always down to put in the hours.
When we first met, her apocalyptic landscapes were filled with unease about the state of the natural world. The work didn’t offer any solutions (or even grand opinions) about the climate crisis; but instead it did what all real/ true/ special Art does: It created an opportunity for the viewer to feel less isolated in their own feelings of uncertainty. This is happening. This is scary. But your not alone, I feel it too.
It meant a lot to me to know that Cathy was up late at night in her studio, grappling with the same unthinkable thoughts that I had. It still does.
In the years that followed a sense of magical serenity fell over her landscapes. Their locations became more remote, more secret. Maybe even more imaginative... Given the body of work was being made at the disastrous beginning of this continuously disastrous decade- You can almost see the searching embedded into the surface of the painting: Where is it we can finally find peace?
1. Twilight Near Round Mountain (2022) 2. Leo's Hike (2021) 3. Pimmit Run (2022)
In the work that makes up CLOSE ENOUGH, bodies intertwine as lovers, partners, protectors - Their shapes changing from piece to piece. They change because of the passage of time; they change to escape the pressures forced upon them. They change because the unthinkable thoughts aren't the only ones worth thinking.
1. Flat Chested 2. Teen Dream 3. Untitled 4. Untitled 5. Red Underwear 6. Hug (2024-2025)
They change because of love. And intimacy. And things that burn so hot they warm the otherwise frigid and unforgiving landscape.
1. Lightening Rod 2. Edge, 3. Beer After Sex (2024)
Cathy's show opens tonight at our DTLA project space WORK ROOM. Come through, say hello, and show some (Valentine's Day) love for CHIRLA.
CHIRLA was founded in 1986 to advance the human and civil rights of immigrants and refugees. CHIRLA became a place for organizations and people who support human rights to work together for policies that advance justice and full inclusion for all immigrants.
CHIRLA’s first director was Father Luis Olivares, the pastor at Our Lady Queen of Angels Church. As a leading voice of the Sanctuary movement, Olivares used his church to protect refugees fleeing human rights abuses in Central America in the 1980s.
CHIRLA has since become one of the largest and most effective advocates for immigrant rights, organizing, educating and defending immigrants and refugees in the streets, in the courts, and in the halls of power.
At CHIRLA, civic-minded immigrant families work for a world where they are free to move, participate in democracy, and enjoy human rights. CHIRLA relies on the love and vision of our community to organize and build power among people, institutions, and organizations to change public opinion and craft progressive policies that promote human, civil and labor rights for everyone.
Lovers Only.
A call to action, commonly known by the initialism CTA, is a strategic marketing tool designed to spur an immediate response from an audience, guiding them toward a specific action.
NNH began with the (perhaps naive) hope that it could be of service to folks who needed it. I wasn't exactly sure who that meant- Was it the potential readership? The Mutual Aid groups that would be featured in each post? Or other creative types (equally fed up with the constant "me at the center" paradigm required by our Tech Overlords) looking for a place to get weird and do some good.
SO, if you're out there- whomever you may be- Let me know. Leave a comment. Click a link. Tell a friend. Pitch an idea. Do anything to feel less alone in the world.
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