Natalie romero and liz zhanG

September 25th- October 29th, 2021

We are trying to get to better physical, spiritual and emotional places, but how do we know when we get there? We find ourselves in real and imagined shelters. There are spaces which tell us how to navigate them. There are stories in which we find safety - family stories and community stories. There are failed refuges which provide only an illusory sense of protection. Art is often a tool of war for its role in communication and resistance yet through it we also fight for our sanity, improve our memory, carry tradition, and care for humanity. We are looking for signs and symbols that aid our navigation of these shared concerns. Through art we test the waters, attempting to find better places to exist.

Natalie Romero and Liz Zhang both explore ideas relating to place, community, and belonging. Liz draws on generic suburban spaces to explore isolation and coexistence. By investigating what makes up those spaces – its walls and hedges, open grassy areas and broad expanses of asphalt - she explores how people communicate and relate to each other. Natalie approaches place through works which welcome viewers to participate and become immersed. Her work proposes ways in which we can care for each other and reflect. Through their respective art practices both artists communicate with themselves, their loved ones and community, and with the broader world. 

This exhibition culminates work made over a twelve-month residency at the Freeman Artist Residency (FAR), housed at Visible Records in Charlottesville, VA. Both artists are exhibiting work that is the culmination of both self-initiated studio work and through their conversations and dialogue over this time. FAR would like to thank Liz & Natalie for their outstanding work and commitment to the residency, during a very challenging year for our families and communities. FAR wishes to thank the Joseph & Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation and the UVa Department of Art for their generous support.

Liz Zhang is a Chinese-American artist born in Yorktown, Virginia. She works primarily in painting, printmaking, and textiles. She graduated in 2019 with a BA in Studio Art from the University of Virginia. Since then, she has participated in the UVA Aunspaugh Fellowship, Elizabeth Murray Artist Residency by Collar Works, and Studios at MASS MoCA residency.

Natalie Romero is a Colombian-Honduran painter, printmaker, poet and entrepreneur from Houston, Texas. She is currently based in NYC. She graduated in 2020 with a BA in Global Development and Sociology from the University of Virginia. She uses artistic expression to inspire reflection and conversation of our relationship to the stigmas and social norms surrounding the politics of body, trauma, responsibility, community and the environment. 

Thank you to The Joseph and Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation and The University of Virginia Department of Art for your support.