Hold Us Tight

The artists featured this exhibition interpret the word Hold in all its forms. Works range from enigmatic and visceral, to familial and sentimental. Layered text draws us in to decipher the message and contemplate our own interpretation. Photographs, drawings, and paintings of people sharing a moment or embrace, parallel lines that draw so near without touching, these works ask us to consider the many ways we are held and the ways we hold others. Disability, health, and self-care are among the other themes drawn from these selections. This exhibition features local and national artists, together with artists supported by progressive art studios here in the Twin Cities as well as Portland, OR.

Curator Benjamin Merritt’s personal work affirms & celebrates the experience of chronic illness & disability through text & printmaking. Merritt is a printmaker with a BFA from the Minneapolis College of Art & Design. He was a Jerome Emerging Printmakers Resident at Highpoint Center for Printmaking in Minneapolis & a Resident Artist at Spudnik Press in Chicago.

This exhibition features the work of Heidi Bakk, Katherine Bockelmann, Cecily Bohmann, Kate Burke, Maria Cline, Marcelese Cooper, Naomi Crocker, Ben DiNino, Kendall Dickenson, Josh Eiberg, Victoria Eidelsztein, Moonbeam Gardebring, Alondra Garza, Drew Jonell, Isaiah Jones, Tiffany Lange, Randy Legried, Madison May, Francesca Miguieles, Kirby Miles, Laurie Mosman, Lynda Mullan, Kyle Nobles, Lena Osman, Sarah Plummer, Jill Reedy, Adam Richards, Nina Robinson, Chris Rowley, Jonelle Salemi, Stacie Sampson, Nico Sardina, Josh Selvig, Joni Smith, Nicole Thomas, Victor Van, Harrison Wayne, Kimberly Wetzel, and Ger Xiong.

Image artwork by Kimberly Wetzel