Baltimore-based artist Erin Stellmon explores the physical and metaphorical presence of walls and fences in her mixed-media collages and paintings on view in “For Your Safety,” opening Thursday, October 4, 2018 through Sunday, January 6, 2019 at Top of the World Observation Level. An opening reception takes place Friday, October 26 from 5 to 7pm. Managed by the Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts (BOPA), Top of the World Observation Level is located on the 27th floor of the World Trade Center at 401 E. Pratt Street. Admission is free to the reception, but guests must arrive by 6:30pm.
The Portland, OR, native photographs brick and stone walls, rock piles, staircases and temporary fencing throughout Maryland. Stellmon combines her photos with quilt pieces, along with imagery from the Oregon Trail to further question her ancestors’ right to lay claim to land and build barriers. Her use of paper collage exposes the fragility of these boundaries, while a neon palette is employed to both attract and repel the viewer—turning the serenity of traditional American landscape painting into a visual Emergency Alert.
Image: Erin Stellmon, Alien Landscape Under Construction.