Good Naked (New York NY) & Smoke the Moon (Santa Fe NM) proudly present:
NIGHT FEEDING // A solo exhibition of work by
Sarah Alice Moran
OPENING // FRIDAY APRIL 15 // 6 - 8 P
APRIL 15 - MAY 15, 2022
In collaboration with Smoke the Moon // 616 ½ Canyon Road Santa Fe NM
Sarah Alice Moran makes magic paintings. The bleeding and soaking action of her pigments on unprimed canvas conjures a primal feminine force. In Moran’s universe, there is darkness in rainbows, comfort in the presence of ghosts, and an entire bestiary of supernatural familiars. The compositions contain contradictions: they often overlay flat iconography atop scenes with depth and realism, combine humor with the macabre, and create fully realized characters with minimal mark-making. Moran aims to redefine power and strength by highlighting moments of intuition, communication and contemplation. The work is witchy in the ancient, alchemical, abject-feminine sense, yet it is grounded in contemporaneity, with influences ranging from Balthus to Scooby-Doo.
The exhibition’s title comes from Night Feeding, a painting inspired by the Capitoline Wolf and the story of Romulus and Remus and their violent competition. Instead of the two boys being reared by the wolf, Moran reunites the mother with her cub. The cub is fed not with milk but instead with the same stars used to feed the sky and yield direction to those lost in darkness. Faces floating above take their stance like a Greek chorus asserting outside influences of hope and fear. These faces and acting consciences pay witness to this moment of intimacy and strength.
Moran’s works often pay homage to these kinds of private experiences where figures and creatures commune and self-reflect. In Feeding the Crows and Blue Flowers a gesture of connection or generosity is extended. Plants, sky, and grass gather to take note of this exchange. Each female figure is both cautious and resolved in her movement toward contact and communication. As viewers become familiar with the lexicon of visual vocabulary that populates these paintings, we are left to puzzle each symbol’s role and its myriad functions. The crows are both actors and potential figments of this woman’s thoughts or dreams. Is she making contact with living forms or collecting/sharing knowledge from another realm? The rainbow of color that stretches across the canvas suggests a division between worlds - night/day, private/public, movement/stillness. In Blue Flowers the point of contact is more tentative and the daisies look up to observe this new dialogue of gesture and response. The woman and zebra form yet another division across the surface of the painting. Referencing formalists and spiritualists like Hilma Af Klint, Moran invokes a composition that guides our vision toward this central offering - the hand and flower gently extended toward the zebra, inviting sensory exploration and issuing a moment of light within an otherwise stormy palette. The frenetic and playful nature of these flowers as witnesses contrasts the upper portion of the frame, which posits a more foreboding and somber tone.
Moran guides her process in painting with precision and openness as she leaves space for imagery to populate each scene over the course of its making. Not all symbols or forms are preconceived and this kind of visual improvisation requires a responsiveness throughout her focused periods of production. Moran often references tarot in her work and in particular Pamela Colman Smith’s illustration of the Strength card - one that depicts a woman gently caressing a lion around its muzzle. Strength is portrayed here not with physical force but instead with intuition and kindness. Moran’s process and economy of color and form present this kind of confidence and strength. We are thrilled to bring these enchanting figures to The Land of Enchantment. Please join us in engaging these wondrous worlds and discovering magic in their presentation.
Sarah Alice Moran (b. 1982, New York, NY) received a BA from Bowdoin College, Brunswick, ME and an MFA from The Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Boston, MA. Her work has been exhibited in group shows at Pratt Institute, Monya Rowe Gallery, 1969 Gallery, Field Projects, and C24 Gallery, among others. Moran has completed residencies at the Anderson Ranch Art Center, CO, The Wassaic Project, NY and Can Serrat, Spain. Her work has been featured in publications including Brooklyn Magazine and ArtMaze. She is represented by Good Naked Gallery in NY, and she lives and works in Brooklyn, NY.
NIGHT FEEDING will be on view April 15 - May 15, 2022.
Gallery Hours: Thursday - Sunday / 12 - 4p and by appointment
616 ½ Canyon Road Santa Fe NM
For more information please contact info@goodnakedgallery.com.