Exhibition
June 26 – July 14, 2018
Jacob Lawrence Gallery
Reception: Thursday, June 28, 5–8pm
The Jacob Lawrence Gallery is pleased to host a solo exhibition of new work by artist Megumi Shauna Arai. Midst is a meditation on the nature of belonging expressed in a collection of photography and installation with references to navigation, issues of home, and Japanese animistic practices as metaphor.
Artist
Megumi Shauna Arai is a self-taught half Japanese and Jewish multidisciplinary artist working in a variety of mediums including photography, installation, and textiles. She grew up between the Pacific Northwest and Tokyo with a cultural anthropologist mother and economist father. Immersive experiences of regional crafts and practices related to her multicultural upbringing underlie her reinterpretation of these traditions into a contemporary conceptual context. The artist is drawn to investigating assimilation and resistance, othering, and social disconnection in the present day. Her work has shown in Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, Indianapolis, and New York, including exhibitions at the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art and the Wing Luke Museum. She has been awarded grants from 4Culture, Artist Trust, and the Puffin Foundation along with a commission and prize from the King County Office of Art and Culture and CityArts. Residencies include the Photographic Center Northwest (Seattle), Cow House Studios (Ireland), Awagami Factory (Japan), and Haystack Mountain School of Craft (Maine).