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Childs Gallery

Joan Hall: Turning Tides

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Joan Hall: Turning Tides

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An avid sailor, Joan Hall works tirelessly to promote marine advocacy through her art. From her home and studio in Jamestown, RI, Hall sees the effects of climate change firsthand. Non-native invasive algae species and plastic pollution found in the waters of Narragansett Bay feature prominently in her large-scale paper-based installations.

Hall focuses on the use of handmade paper to shape the undulating wave-like forms of her sculptural pieces. Her work also incorporates various printmaking techniques, using plastics and assorted trash found on local beaches to create collagraphic plates. The resultant prints are a beautiful but brutal reminder of humankind's role in widespread oceanic pollution. In other works, Hall directly infuses detritus into the artwork - a visual representation of how pervasive the plastic problem truly is.

Ultimately, Hall's goal is to initiate a conversation about the deterioration of our greatest resource - water. The intensive process and sheer scale of Hall's work commands attention, confronting the audience with beauty that conceals ecological trouble.

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Image: Joan Hall, The New Living Reef #1 (detail)

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The beauty of the ocean, its endless shifting from serene to deadly and back, its maritime lore and history, and our physical relationship to the ocean have informed a lifetime of creative exploration. My art has evolved from a personal relationship I have always felt to the ocean to a global concern about ocean pollution and our intertwined mortality. My work combines my need to make art that is visually arresting with my passion for marine advocacy.

-Joan Hall

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Joan Hall

Beneath the Tropic Sea, 2019

Handmade paper of abaca and linen, detritus

26 x 34 1/2 x 4 inches

$4,500

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Joan Hall

Incoming Red, 2018

Handmade paper, mixed media, glass bead construction

35 x 36 inches

$5,000

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Joan Hall

On a Sea of Tears, 2020

Handmade paper, collograph printing, hand cut construction

68 x 66 x 6 inches

$16,000

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Joan Hall

Red Tide Returning, 2020

Handmade paper, collograph printing, hand cut construction

48 x 72 x 17 inches

$12,000

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Joan Hall

Slip Sliding Away, 2020

Handmade paper, collograph printing, hand cut construction, glass beads

36 x 58 x 10 inches

$8,500

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Joan Hall

The New Living Reef #1, 2020

Handmade paper using kozo, gampi, and abaca

32 x 35 inches

$5,500

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Joan Hall

The New Living Reef #2, 2020

Handmade paper using kozo, gampi, and abaca

33 x 35 inches

$5,500

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Joan Hall

The New Living Reef #3, 2020

Handmade paper using kozo, gampi, and abaca

32 x 41 inches

$5,500

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Joan Hall

The New Living Reef #5, 2020

Handmade paper using kozo, gampi, and abaca

31 x 21 inches

$4,500

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Joan Hall

The New Normal, 2020

Handmade paper, collograph printing, hand cut construction

48 x 58 x 10 inches

$11,500

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Joan Hall

Joan Hall works in mixed media and large-scale sculptural installations with an emphasis on the materials of paper, glass, and metal. Hall Received her BFA at the Columbus College of Art and Design in Ohio and her MFA at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She studied papermaking with Garner Tullis at the Institute of Experimental Papermaking and Printmaking in San Francisco. She is known for her innovative approaches to material and process. An avid sailor, her work focuses on human interactions with and impact on the ocean, particularly in regards to plastic pollution. Hall’s work has been exhibited nationally and internationally at the Brooklyn Museum of Art (NY), Leopold-Hoesch Museum Germany), Newport Art Museum, (RI), St. Louis Art Museum (MO), Museum of Nebraska Art (Kearney, NE), Silkeborg Art Center (Denmark), The Blue Star Contemporary Art Center (San Antonio, TX), George Mason University (Fairfax, VA), Joslyn Art Museum (Omaha, NE), Hillwood Art Museum, (Brookville, NY), Walton Art Center, (Fayetteville, AR), Budapest Museum of Fine Arts (Hungary), Nordjyllands Museum of Art(Aalborg, Denmark), Suwa Municipal Museum (Japan), Municipal Museum ( Nanjing, China), Musée d’ Art (Lyon, France), and the Rijswijk Museum and Apeldoorn Museums ( The Netherlands) and the Meadows Museum (Shreveport, LA). Her was recently included in the European Cultural Center’s “Personal Structures“ a collateral exhibition during the Venice Biennale 2019.

Full Biography

Curriculum Vitae

Childs Gallery can be reached at:

phone: 617-266-1108
email: [email protected]

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169 Newbury Street,

Boston, MA 02116

Or visit online at https://childsgallery.com/

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