Erika Blumenfeld

Early Findings: Artifacts from The Polar Project
September 4 – October 24th

A display of eight framed photographs arranged in a symmetrical grid on a light-colored wall, showcasing a variety of abstract and textural themes.
Art gallery interior showing an exhibition titled "Erika Blumenfeld: Early Findings/Artifacts from the Polar Project" with a series of framed photographs and digital displays, and blue sofas in the foreground.
Text on a page reflecting personal thoughts about observing the horizon, feeling both limitless and constrained, with themes of nature, change, and existential reflection. The tone is introspective and poetic.
Three tall, narrow white panels displayed on a wall, each containing dense text. The first panel is titled "WHAT IS WHITE?" in bold letters at the top.
A serene art gallery hallway with two white walls displaying sets of framed photographs, featuring various light and landscape themes. Soft lighting from the ceiling illuminates the space.
Modern art gallery interior with white walls displaying various framed artworks, spotlighted, and a gray carpeted floor leading through the space.
Eight framed photographs displaying various serene, horizontal landscapes hung neatly on a gallery wall. Each image features soft color gradients that evoke tranquil seascapes or desolate terrains.
Four monitors on display each showing different landscapes: a desert, rocky terrain, close-up of water droplets, and a sunset scene.
A lively art gallery opening with people standing and conversing. The room has white walls decorated with framed pictures of varying blue shades.
A group of people viewing digital artworks displayed on wall-mounted screens in a brightly lit gallery, engaging in conversation and observing the art.
People viewing photographs at an art gallery exhibition, engaging in conversations and observing various displayed artworks on the walls.
An art gallery filled with people mingling and viewing various artworks. The environment is warm and sociable, with art pieces displayed on well-lit walls.
People observing framed artwork on a white wall in a gallery. A man in a baseball cap and a woman with curly hair stand closely viewing one exhibit. Other visitors are dispersed, engaging with various displays. The gallery has a bright, modern interior.
People viewing art at a gallery exhibition, with some standing and talking, while others are observing paintings displayed on the wall-mounted screens.
Guests interact and view artwork at a gallery opening, featuring framed landscape paintings on white walls in a well-lit indoor setting.
A group of people engaging in conversation at an art gallery event, with artwork displayed on the walls and refreshments on a nearby cart.

Press Release

Richard Levy Gallery, in participation with LAND/ART, is pleased to present Early Findings: Artifacts from The Polar Project, a solo exhibition of new work by Erika Blumenfeld.

This exhibition takes an in-depth look at the sublime landscape of Antarctica, and includes photographs, video installations, and text from Blumenfeld’s essay “What is White”. This show seamlessly blends art, science, and the environment, and evokes a profound visceral experience of the Ice Continent.

In late January 2009, Erika Blumenfeld traveled to the Queen Maud Land area of Eastern Antarctica and lived for four weeks amidst the vast ice fields, luminous glaciers and ancient rock-mountains. Blumenfeld was given the rare opportunity to join the South African National Antarctica Program for their summer science season on the ice, and be the artist-in-residence of the research team ITASC (Interpolar Transnational Art Science Constellation).

Living between the SANAE base station, and her team’s 100% wind and solar powered mobile field base, called ICEPAC, Blumenfeld initiated her environment-focused series, The Polar Project. Recalling the intricate renderings from nature that evolved from the extensive travels of naturalists and botanical illustrators during the time of the Renaissance, Blumenfeld’s new photographs and videos from Antarctica ask us to peer into nature’s infinite details and patterns.

Interested in conserving the rare environment of the Arctic and Antarctica for future generations, Blumenfeld arrived back from the Ice Continent with a new understanding of her work’s intent. “I’m realizing more and more that, in all of my works, I’m really an ecologist and an archivist. I’m attempting to document and catalogue in order to preserve the natural phenomena I witness, and show its particular inherent beauty.”

Dates: September 4–October 24th, 2009
Reception: October 3, 6-8pm
Hours: Tuesday–Saturday, 11 am–4 pm
Location: 514 Central Avenue SW, Albuquerque, NM 87102
Contact: 505.766.9888, info@levygallery.com, www.levygallery.com @levygallery