Emerson exhibit provides intimate experience

Since Sept. 10, 2021, the Weaver Room at the Emerson Center for Arts & Culture has been displaying an exhibit titled “Liminal Strangeness” by Jade Lowder. Liminality relates to a space or moment of transition. A liminal “space” may be seen in a hallway, corridor or the time between being a child and entering adulthood, for example.

All types of physical and metaphorical moments are captured in Lowder’s exhibition, which takes the form of mixed media and oil paint on canvas, as well as alternative bases, such as a window frame. One such piece, “Child Bride,” captures the moment that a figure is fixing their collar. Lowder displays the digging form of the hands to reach under the collar, while the figure has their head raised to make room for their hands, exposing their neck and jawline. Though it’s a small, somewhat-unremarkable moment, Lowder paints everyday moments such as this with an arresting amount of intimacy. The observer enters into a semi-tangible relationship with these pieces, as they are all ordinary moments that most people independently experience or take part in.

Lowder made sensory stimulation a priority in his work. On the plaque next to his displayed work he writes, “My work thrives on tactility. We feel the brushstrokes and the movement of the image in our bodies. The artist’s presence is known through the interpretation and the act of making. The ability to perceive touch through visual cues in an image, forms a direct link between the viewer, the piece, and the maker.”

A favorite piece of mine, among the many spectacular pieces, is titled “Don't Look in the Basement.” In Lowder’s universe of oils and colors, he shows the observer a person, leaning against a doorframe, obscuring their face and upper left chest and presumably looking down into a basement. Lowder displays a theme among his pieces that emphasizes an inability for the observer to see the painted subject's face or eyes. For the observer, or me at least, the nebulous, awkward, moment of attempting to make out the identity of the subject is a perfect example of the liminality of trying to identify or familiarize a stranger.

Lowder’s display is a wonderful experience to take part in alone. Examining liminality quietly, without distraction, is simultaneously comforting and grounding (while being awkward, insecure and uncomfortable in the face of your own identity.) I recommend spending some time in front of Lowder’s art for the sake of fantastic art as well as self reflection. Lowder’s exhibit will remain in the Weaver Room of the Emerson’s second floor until Friday, Nov. 12.