Finch on a Power Line

“Finch on a Powerline” gathers a body of work that hovers between stillness and voltage, tracing the delicate moment where observation becomes revelation. The finch is never seen in the exhibition, instead, viewers take on that role. Small, alert, suspended above the mundane, viewers experience the work as though perched just high enough to shift perspective, yet close enough to remain embedded in the hustle of the city below it. The paintings are installed covertly throughout the exhibition, requiring viewers to seek them out, meanwhile a video installation behind a wall requires viewing through a peephole. The installation of the work extends the metaphor of a bird’s eye view, offering a view of the world that is both intimate and aerial.

Across the show, recurring motifs of wires, thresholds, and transient light organize the visual field. Lines quiver like held breath; surfaces vibrate with graphite grit, layered acrylic, and cut paper whose edges refuse to settle. This unsettledness is the emotional core of the exhibition. Rather than presenting the world as fixed or whole, the work dwells in the in between–photo and painting, recognizable and unrecognizable. Representing suspended instants when certainty thins and something quieter, more vulnerable, rises to the surface.

At the same time, “Finch on a Powerline” reflects an ongoing inquiry into belonging. The compositions echo the poem that inspired the show: what does it mean to claim a moment from an ordinary perch? How might the smallest gesture, the faintest shadow, articulate a desire to remain grounded while longing for elsewhere? In these pieces, tension becomes a form of tenderness. The finch persists, perched in light, holding a fragile balance, offering a humble, persistent reminder of the beauty found in pausing long enough to see.

This project was made possible with support from the Frank-Ratchye Further Fund Microgrant #2026-004.