Aili Schmeltz: Sewn Constructions

Edward Cella Art & Architecture proudly presents Aili Schmeltz: Sewn Constructions and features her newest works which combine painting, collage, and sewing to create all together new hybrids in her continued fundamental investigation of pattern and form. Conflating notions of traditional “woman’s work” and the mark-making practices and monochromatic pallet of Minimalist painters; these wall-based sculptures dazzle in their subtle radiance and undulation of color. Sewn Constructions represents her second exhibition with the gallery and will run concurrently with an installation of her works on paper at The Landing gallery in Los Angeles.

The research-based practice of Aili Schmeltz often alludes to utopian ideologies that inform the development of the American West and the vast artificial environments of Southern California in particular. Schmeltz initially focused the new series on historical female figures who were trailblazer in the exploration, settlement, and preservation of the Mojave Desert – a landscape where the artist resides part time and is a constant source of fascination and inspiration. As the series developed Schmeltz began to see the new typological and spatial colonization that the hybrid artworks represent as a lens to consider a greater range of historical women of California who were leaders in the struggle for equality including advocacy for Native Americans, African Americans, Mexican Americans, LGBTQIA+, and Women’s suffrage.

Referencing historical figures like Grace Finley, June Paxton, and Melissa Branson Stedman; Schmeltz honors pioneering woman who undertook gender-breaking roles as miners, explorers, writers, and activists. One work is titled after 19th-century African American entrepreneur, financier, real estate magnate and abolitionist Mary Ellen Pleasant (1814- 1904) who expanded the Underground Railroad westward and achieved legal victories for civil rights that have enduring relevance earning her the title, "The Mother of Human Rights in California." Another work is a tribute to the avid gardener and desert conservation advocate Minerva Hamilton Hoyt (1866-1945) who championed the creation of Joshua Tree National Park that became reality in 1936. Together the series is a reexamination of tapestry of our historical fabric, recognizing progressive females whose legacies precede enormous changes in the role, recognition, and power of women today.