The Brew House Association (BHA) in Pittsburgh is set to showcase the latest works of seven local emerging artists in the Distillery Artist-in-Residence Group Exhibition titled “Rip, Repair, Repeat”. The exhibition, a culmination of a year-long studio residency, opens on April 20 and runs through June 17, 2023, at the Brew House Gallery.
The Artists-in-Residence program of BHA serves as a nurturing platform for emerging artists, aiming to help them transition into professional artistic careers by bolstering a robust studio practice and providing them with professional development opportunities. This year’s residents, who have demonstrated a willingness to take risks and reimagine their creative practices, include Sandra Bacchi, Tara Hayes, Jameelah Platt, Nick Sardo, Rachel Morgan Simmons, Zim Syed, and Paige Tibbe.
Sandra Bacchi, a Brazilian-American artist based in Pittsburgh, uses photography, video, and glass to weave open-ended stories about human beings finding common ground.
Tara Collins Hayes, originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, is a freelance artist who specializes in a range of artistic trades, including traditional painting. Her works are often figurative, and she has a particular interest in oddities and the macabre.
Jameelah Platt, a Pittsburgh native, is an interdisciplinary artist whose work primarily focuses on painting and collage. Influenced by Black American culture, history, and the people we choose to immortalize, her work reflects her fascination with narrative building, African American portraiture and film, assemblage and the adornment of objects, spaces, and people.
Nick Sardo, originally from Santa Monica, CA, and now based in Pittsburgh, is a mixed media artist whose work revolves around a uniquely satirical take on the idea of the divine, drawing from sources ranging from Byzantine iconography to 80’s cartoons.
Rachel Morgan Simmons, raised on a farm in McDonald, PA, is a painter, published poet, and multidisciplinary artist. Her work explores the boundaries and intersections of the perceivable world and what lies beyond. She seeks to materialize divinity—not divine in the sense of religion, but personally divine in the sense of describing a core truth.
Zim Syed is a Bangladeshi-American multi-media artist known for his unique art style that blends cultures and time periods. An Economics graduate from the University of Pittsburgh, he now exhibits globally, using art to discuss social issues.
Paige Tibbe uses portraiture and figuration as vehicles to explore feelings and thoughts that stem from life events and everyday occurrences. She primarily works in oil paint, charcoal, or graphite, and often creates collages using colors and imagery
The title of the exhibition, “Rip, Repair, Repeat”, signifies the process of mending and making whole while acknowledging the cyclical nature of the creative process, suggesting that taking apart is as integral to progress as putting together. The public is invited to the opening reception on April 20, with a poetry reading by Rachel Morgan Simmons slated for 7:00 pm. The gallery is open on Thursdays from 2-7 pm and Fridays and Saturdays from 11-4 pm.
In addition to the exhibition, the Brew House has arranged for other public programs throughout the length of the exhibition, including an Artist Panel Talk and Reception on Thursday, May 11, from 7-9 pm.