Mary Early

Abstract Beeswax Line Painting Untitled (Study for Līnea)

2021

Poured beeswax work by Mary Early from her "Study for Līnea" series. "The production, or “pouring,” of beeswax elements has become a meditative process that is integral to my art practice, serving as an observation of time, materials, and space. The raw beeswax I use has taken its form at the end of a long series of natural processes followed by a manufacturing process, and once it is in my hands, the studio becomes a factory. I apply my own methods of transforming the material by casting the beeswax into three-dimensional forms. Once I have fixed both a place and a time in the future for a potential installation, I begin to determine how the beeswax lines will take their aggregated shape in that space and, simultaneously, how many lines might be manufactured for that particular space in the amount of time available." Mary Early (born 1975, Washington, DC) lives and works in Washington, DC. She studied visual art, film, and video at Bennington College, and her work has been exhibited at the United States Botanic Garden, Washington Project for the Arts, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Second Street Gallery (Charlottesville, VA), Hemphill Fine Arts (Washington DC,) the Austrian Cultural Forum (Washington DC), Galerie Im Ersten (Vienna, Austria), Kloster Schloss Salem (Salem, Germany), Kunstlerbund Tubingen (Tubingen, Germany), and the American University Museum (Washington DC) among other regional and national galleries. Her early work incorporated formed concrete, tarpaper and paraffin wax, fabricated wood structures, and, increasingly over the years, surfaces coated with wax as a method of preserving or concealing an object within. Recent works have relied solely on solid forms cast in wax, abandoning the use of any permanent armature. Temporary installations are guided by schematic drawings and plans, which then serve as a permanent record. In 2014 she exhibited her first large-scale installation of wax lines at Second Street Gallery in Charlottesville, VA, followed by temporary installations in response to various historical sites in Salem, Germany (2016) and Tubingen Germany (2017). In 2017 she participated in the exhibition “Twist-Layer-Pour” at the American University Museum, which included Untitled [Curve], an installation of thousands of beeswax lines assembled on the floor of the museum. In spring 2018 she was commissioned to create a temporary installation at the Sun Valley Center for the Arts, Sun Valley Idaho. This work took the form of two intersecting curtains of hanging beeswax lines bisecting a 12’ foot x 18’ foot room, providing an immersive and enclosed viewing space. Early’s work is included in the collections of the US Department of State/Embassy of Panama, Kimpton Hotels, and the District of Columbia Art Bank among other public and private collections. She is a recipient of the Artist Fellowship Grant from the DC Commission on Arts & Humanities, Washington DC (2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2011, 2009, 2007). Early is the director of HEMPHILL Fine Arts, Washington, DC, and serves on the boards of Hamiltonian Artists and Washington Sculptors Group. She handles the work of contemporary artists and artist estates, including the work of William Christenberry, Colby Caldwell, Hedieh Javanshir Ilchi, Linling Lu, Mingering Mike, Robin Rose, Renée Stout...

Original work by Mary Early. Work is graphite, wax crayon, and sumi ink on Arches paper, 12 1/4 x 16". "The production, or “pouring,” of beeswax elements has become a meditative process that is integral to my art practice, serving as an observation of time, materials, and space. The raw beeswax I use has taken its form at the end of a long series of natural processes followed by a manufacturing process, and once it is in my hands, the studio becomes a factory. I apply my own methods of transforming the material by casting the beeswax into three-dimensional forms. Once I have fixed both a place and a time in the future for a potential installation, I begin to determine how the beeswax lines will take their aggregated shape in that space and, simultaneously, how many lines might be manufactured for that particular space in the amount of time available." Mary Early (born 1975, Washington, DC) lives and works in Washington, DC. She studied visual art, film, and video at Bennington College, and her work has been exhibited at the United States Botanic Garden, Washington Project for the Arts, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Second Street Gallery (Charlottesville, VA), Hemphill Fine Arts (Washington DC,) the Austrian Cultural Forum (Washington DC), Galerie Im Ersten (Vienna, Austria), Kloster Schloss Salem (Salem, Germany), Kunstlerbund Tubingen (Tubingen, Germany), and the American University Museum (Washington DC) among other regional and national galleries. Her early work incorporated formed concrete, tarpaper and paraffin wax, fabricated wood structures, and, increasingly over the years, surfaces coated with wax as a method of preserving or concealing an object within. Recent works have relied solely on solid forms cast in wax, abandoning the use of any permanent armature. Temporary installations are guided by schematic drawings and plans, which then serve as a permanent record. In 2014 she exhibited her first large-scale installation of wax lines at Second Street Gallery in Charlottesville, VA, followed by temporary installations in response to various historical sites in Salem, Germany (2016) and Tubingen Germany (2017). In 2017 she participated in the exhibition “Twist-Layer-Pour” at the American University Museum, which included Untitled [Curve], an installation of thousands of beeswax lines assembled on the floor of the museum. In spring 2018 she was commissioned to create a temporary installation at the Sun Valley Center for the Arts, Sun Valley Idaho. This work took the form of two intersecting curtains of hanging beeswax lines bisecting a 12’ foot x 18’ foot room, providing an immersive and enclosed viewing space. Early’s work is included in the collections of the US Department of State/Embassy of Panama, Kimpton Hotels, and the District of Columbia Art Bank among other public and private collections. She is a recipient of the Artist Fellowship Grant from the DC Commission on Arts & Humanities, Washington DC (2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2011, 2009, 2007). Early is the director of HEMPHILL Fine Arts, Washington, DC, and serves on the boards of Hamiltonian Artists and Washington Sculptors Group. She handles the work of contemporary artists and artist estates, including the work of William Christenberry, Colby Caldwell, Hedieh Javanshir Ilchi, Linling Lu, Mingering Mike, Robin Rose, Renée Stout...

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