The word “medium” in art is generally understood to be the material that is used to create a work art, or “a means to an end.” The Medium and Message tells a different story. Anjelika Deogirikar, for example, uses watercolor and the interplay of geometric shapes to show how stories are woven into our lives, and Joshua Dunn uses pigmented ink to capture the realistic precision of the world as seen through human eyes. Taina Litwak arranges fragments of discarded plastics to convey the toxic petroleum compounds contained within them, while Zughaib arranges acrylic shoes on a wall to represent children fleeing their country during times of war. 

The synthesis of medium and form are also evident in the fluidity and juxtaposition of materials. Mahy Polymeropoulos uses oil to bring the feelings we contain within us to the surface, Joanna Mozerella works with encaustic as an intuitive form of expression, Hasini Shyamsundar uses collage to bring disparate elements together, Raquell Keller uses kinetic sculpture to tell stories through things we collect, and Fadia Jawdat presents elements in opposition to one another to convey oppression and freedom.

The Medium and the Message reveals that materials are not merely tools that serve a predictable end, but vehicles of self expression that navigate and expand the fields of possibility.

Featured Artists:

Anjelika Deogirikar Grossman, Fadia Jawdat, Hasini Shyamsundar, Helen Zughaib, Joanna Mazerella, Joshua Dunn, Mahy Polymeropoulos, Raquel Keller, Taina Litwak

Timothy Brown is the directior of IA&A at Hillyer, International Arts and Artists contemporary art center in Washington DC. Brown has been the Hillyer Director since September 2021, when he was hired to re-open the space after being closed for 20 months. Since then, Hillyer relaunced its annual Call for Proposals, and numerous exhibition partnerships with arts organizations and embassies, resulting in 136 exhibitions, 254 public programs, and 429 artists who have been featured in solo and group exhibitions. Brown also relaunched the membership program, which includes a number of practicing artists in the Washington DC Metropolitan area. The exhibition The Medium and Message features a small selection of artists who have supported us over the years.