For Immediate Release

Mirrors & Malfunctions:
New Work from Shyama Golden and Mimi O Chun

November 8, 2018, New York City

Artists Shyama Golden and Mimi O Chun are pleased to present an exhibition of recent works. “Mirrors & Malfunctions” speaks to the mutation of world views that arise as political systems and social norms become increasingly polarized and insular. The show will run for one weekend only from November 30–December 2, 2018 at 198 Allen Street, New York, NY with a reception open to the public on Friday, November 30th from 6pm to 11pm.

Shyama Golden paints in oil and acrylic using figuration to explore how identity is experienced, performed, and reinforced. Her exhibited work will focus on intersectional identities, particularly those of hyphenated-Americans. Shyama’s subjects are a combination of real and imagined people—primarily women—with masks and animals often functioning as metaphors for human social dynamics. Her process begins with detailed iPad studies, which she then projects and paints onto a ground. When rendered in paint, the mechanical perfection of her digital studies gives way to the hand of the artist. The resulting work captures the symmetry and repetition inherent to nature, but also, its imperfections.

Working in fiber-based media, Mimi O Chun will exhibit soft sculptures and works on paper spanning four discrete bodies of work. At its core, her work tackles the tensions between the pursuit of individual identity vs. the shared values of cultural economies. Creatures of Commerce presents a nihilistic vision of the future though fictional chimeras that mash up creatures with commercial goods that best embody a capitalist ethos. Manu Propria offers an uncanny—and often imperfect—view of feminine expression through oversized hands adorned with nail art and jewelry. Hair Supply gives the historical figures featured on banknotes transformational, au courant makeovers. Lastly, the vignettes of Stuffed Hipster Emblems capture our collective fanaticism for the artisanal, the small batch, and the hand-crafted.  

Gallery hours are open to the public Saturday, December 1st and Sunday, December 2nd from 12pm to 8pm, or by appointment. For additional information, please contact Shyama Golden at 512 363 3437 or art@shyamagolden.com or Mimi O Chun at mimiochun@gmail.com or 917 592 4578.

Shyama Golden’s paintings lie strategically between the cute and the grotesque, inviting the viewer to discover new details through multiple viewings. They are influenced by her scientist parents and childhood exposure to Buddhist philosophy. Her work has been published by The New York Times, The Atlantic, Wired, Washington Post, Chronicle Books, and Penguin Random House. She has a BFA from Texas Tech University and is based in Brooklyn, NY.

Mimi O Chun’s sculptures recast and re-contextualize existing vernacular to reveal beauty — at times irony — and ultimately truth about the cultural mores we collectively adopt, perpetuate, and create. Her work has been published by Princeton Architectural Press, Fast Company, Bon Appétit, White Zinfandel, Gather Journal, and Makeshift magazine. Mimi earned her BFA from Carnegie Mellon University and her MFA from Yale School of Art, and resides in Brooklyn, NY.