To understand the essence of Flower Shop, we must think of color not just as a visual element but as a language of its own. Color is what makes the world visible, yet its perception is deeply personal. Does a vibrant burst of red or the delicate fade of blue appear the same to everyone? Or does each of us experience a slightly different reality?
This exhibition brings together the works of Maria Andrievskaya, Almendra Bertoni, Katie Hector, Jen Hitchings, and John Denniston II, five artists who push the boundaries of how we see and feel color. The title, Flower Shop, was born from a fleeting yet vivid moment—passing by a florist and being struck by the explosion of hues, an everyday spectacle that suddenly revealed itself as something more.
Maria Andrievskaya, practice poses questions about value, perception, and protection: what we choose to nurture, what we neglect, and how we might rediscover wonder in a fragile world. Through her poetic surfaces, she invites viewers to slow down, look closely, and reconnect with the intricate rhythms of the natural world.
Almendra Bertoni, practice encompasses painting and sculpture. Her work challenges and examines religion, questioning taboos, such as sex and intimacy, with boldly surreal works that are all underpinned by extensive research, and are shaped by her interests in Renaissance art, contemporary churches, and past masters.
Katie Hector’s paintings are visceral, textured, and emotionally charged. Thick layers of paint, rich in depth and contrast, evoke the sensation of a lush bouquet—an overload of color and feeling that is both harmonious and overwhelming. Her work reminds us that color isn’t just something we see; it’s something we react to, something we carry with us.
Jen Hitchings captures the fleeting beauty of nature, not as a literal depiction but as an experience suspended in time. Her canvases vibrate with diffused, refracted light, creating an illusion of movement within stillness. Looking at her work isn’t just about seeing—it’s about shifting your way of seeing. The more time spent with her paintings, the more they reveal themselves, as subtle variations in tone and form emerge, hidden at first glance.
John Denniston II, uses oil paint as a medium to improvise within realistic picture-making structures. By staging scenes of chaotic abstraction from classic formulas, he challenges the ideological implications founded in historic painting practices, opening within them a surreal scene of figurative possibilities. In taking on the discourses of philosophy and anthropology with an artist’s introspection and imagination, he pressures the ability of paint to evoke the conceptual out of the formal, generate new commentaries, and lighten the weight of burdensome logic.
Together, these artists transform Flower Shop into something beyond an exhibition—it becomes a sensory experience, a meditation on how we perceive and interact with color.
Hosted by Volery Gallery, a key player in Dubai’s contemporary art scene, this show promises to be an immersive exploration of beauty, perception, and the power of seeing.
Exhibition Dates:
April 18 - May 17, 2025 | 2:00 PM - 7:00 PM
For inquiries and to register interest on the Preview List please email info@volerygallery.com