“Life Still”
An Exhibition in Partnership with YAI Arts – Summer 2020

Life Still 

Ground Floor Gallery with YAI Arts

On view on Artsy

June 22 – September 13, 2020

A still life is commonly defined as “a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter:” vases bursting with sunflowers, platters of ripe fruit, a skull artfully displayed atop a stack of books. 

These days, however, stillness applies not only to inanimate objects. Artists based in and around New York City — one of the epicenters of the Covid-19 pandemic – are hunkered down in apartments, houses, and supported group residences. With the city’s bustling energy on pause, they are hustling to balance the demands of quarantine, document this unprecedented crisis, and envision an equitable and compassionate future.

With this in mind, artists from YAI Arts – a New York studio supporting artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities – teamed up with artists from Brooklyn’s Ground Floor Gallery for “Life Still,” an exhibition about resilience amidst unsettling stillness. Artists heeded the call to work from home: establishing dedicated studio space in their bedrooms and kitchens, creating work under duress, and documenting it with the technological means available. “Life Still” addresses our ongoing global crisis from perspectives too often unseen. 

Some examples include: Bethanie Irons’ digital still life paintings that transport the still life to the 21st century with witty inclusions such as the New York Times and a Lysol aerosol can;  Élan Cadiz commemorating the everyday heroes of her life through tender portraits supported by scaffolding; Jennifer Quinones‘ drawings of cats as medical workers are kitsch yet earnest tributes to her heroes — both human and feline; and Michelle Wensmann‘s personalized face masks straddle the line between personal protective equipment and sculpture, suggesting that like proper safety regulations, creativity is also a lifeline.

As part of “Life Still,” Everette Ball, one of the YAI’s featured artists, collaborated with the gallery on a commemorative, limited-edition Risograph print to learn about the art of printmaking while raising funds for YAI Arts. Everette, whose work is in prestigious international outsider art collections, including the Museum of Everything in London, is offering a print of his drawing, “Ferris Wheel.”

The artists of YAI confront many challenges to be artists and lead self-directed lives, overcoming the stigma and prejudice that beset people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.  YAI artists are diverse — most are people of color — and many struggle to get their primary needs met in one of the country’s most expensive cities and a society that overlooks and punishes marginalized populations. YAI artists are proud of who they are, their work and their art community. Through their artwork, they find freedom, purpose, and togetherness.   

In their totality, the artists of “Life Still” document our current reality and imagine potential futures. We may be living a still life, but it’s life, still.

Each limited-edition print by Everette Ball is priced at $75 with $40 benefitting YAI Arts’ and empowering programs like this exhibition. 

Image credits: Christine Buda, Everette Ball. YAI Arts

Participating Artists: 

Bethanie Irons

Élan Cadiz

Everette Ball 

Jennifer Quinones

Jimmy Tucker

Juan Hinojosa

Kevin Darmanie

Kelly Murphy

Michelle Wensmann

Chris Chronopoulos 

Larry Willoughby, Jr. 

Anel Jean Baptise Jr. 

Christine Buda

Brian Dyer 

Melanie Martin

Tyron Davis