Press Release: Holly Moe

05.15.98

THE INTERNATIONAL ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE PROGRAM

New Works: 98.2

Joan Bankemper, NEW YORK, NY

Henrik Plenge Jakobsen, COPENHAGEN, DENMARK

Holly Moe, BANDERA, TX

Exhibition: June 11, 1998 ?ly 12, 1998

The International Artist-in-Residence Program, sponsored by ArtPace, A Foundation
for Contemporary Art | San Antonio presents New Works: 98.2, a series of
installations by artists living and working at ArtPace. Joan Bankemper, Henrik Plenge
Jakobsen and Holly Moe were selected by the March 1996 IAIR Program Panel
consisting of Elizabeth Armstrong, David Avalos, Dana Friis-Hansen, Thelma Golden
and Maaretta Jaukkuri. Work produced by the artists during their eight-week residency
will open to the public on Thursday, June 11 at 6:30 PM. An artist talk with Kathryn
Hixson, Editor of the New Art Examiner, will take place on Friday, June 12 at
6:30 PM.

Holly Moe

Born in 1958 in Madison, WI, Holly Moe lives and works in Bandera, TX. Moe holds a
B.S. from the University of California, Los Angeles and an M.F.A. from The University
of Texas at San Antonio. She has exhibited her work throughout Texas, including shows
at Weekend Gallery, Houston, TX; Lyons/Matrix Gallery, Austin, TX; Women and Their
Work Gallery, Austin, TX; Amarillo Art Center, Amarillo, TX; Blue Star Art Space, San
Antonio, TX; the MAC, Dallas, TX; Laguna Gloria Art Museum, Austin, TX; and the
Arlington Museum of Art, Arlington, TX. Moe is a faculty member of San Antonio
College where she teaches design.

Moe's work has blurred the lines of drawing and sculpture through her use of a most
unique material: the artist works almost exclusively with carpet as her medium?sh,
wall-to-wall carpet. In her past work, she has used cigarettes and gunpowder to "draw"
on the carpets in a highly stylized, illustrative manner, and more recently, has moved
towards combining carpets and colors in a paint-by-numbers method. Using images
drawn from everyday life and pop culture, her carpet pieces have explored the social
constructs of feminine identity and domesticity. Her work has been noted for its humor
and accessibility, as well as her innovative experiments with form and material.

At ArtPace, Moe has created her largest-scaled piece to date, Good News.
Carpeted pieces have been placed on the gallery's floor and walls, enveloping the viewer
in rich colors and synthetic material. One enters the space through a pair of carpeted
waves, referencing the parting of The Red Sea as described in the Book of Exodus. After
passing through this patchwork of water, a large piece unfolds on the floor?image of
fruits and vines growing out of an open Bible. An enlarged, almost abstracted pair of
hands in a prayer pose holds one wall. In the rear of the gallery, a carpeted tree supports
the high ceiling, with benches underneath for viewers to gather, contemplate, and pray. In
this installation, Moe continues a tradition of artists exploring religion throughout
history, including important contributions by Michaelangelo, Picasso, and Rothko. In
Moe's work, image and metaphor are used in service to the artists' faith, expressing the
artists' spiritual quest.

445 North Main Avenue San Antonio TX 78205 t 210 212 4900 f 210 212 4990 www.artpace.org