The virus drags on and my life drags on too. Separated from friends and family, masked and conscious of every step I take, I wait for a vaccine or a treatment, for this time to be over and life to go back to normal. In the meantime I work, I make pictures when I can, and I try to figure out how to show what I do in this cloistered world.
Womxn in Windows has an idea for their artists. They show videos in storefronts, and that’s what they are doing on an old Chinatown street near downtown Los Angeles. Chung King Road is kind of perfect for art. Built in the 1930s it’s an illusion, a crafted street created to replace the original Chinatown which stood a few blocks away but was torn down to make way for Union Station. Nowadays the Asian population has largely moved away leaving Chung King Road behind, the old buildings perfect for artists and galleries, so here we are.
I am hungry for the experience of art. The idea of walking on a street and seeing art even through windows appeals to me. So I drive to Chinatown, park on the quiet street and spend an hour wandering between the stores, scanning bar codes in the windows to sync up the soundtracks with the pictures inside and watching the work of eight women artists. It’s a fine experience. The streets are not crowded, the people masked and properly distanced, and as always when I look at art I gain a perspective outside myself, here doubly so by seeing the work behind thick plate glass windows.
This is the second annual exhibition by Womxn in Windows. Their first in 2019 was conceived in order to highlight the perspectives of womxn, and to encourage cross-cultural dialogue. The new show, Womxn in Windows 2020 showcases the film and video works of eight womxn artists who were invited to exhibit work that examines the intertwined relationships between culture, religion and society. This year’s artists—Christine Yuan, Everlane Moraes, Ja’Tovia Gary, Kilo Kish, Kya Lou, Rémie Akl, Rikkí Wright and Sylvie Weber—come from backgrounds spanning the United States, Brazil, Lebanon, Taiwan, the Dominican Republic and Germany. Their group statement says “These films remind us how womxn have relied on faith and on each other as well as on a desire for equality, understanding and the power to make the right choices for ourselves. We are here today because of the faith of our ancestors and because of every womxn who has believed in the power of good”. In the middle of what we are experiencing right now that seems a powerful intention and plenty of reason to walk the windows and watch the stories they tell.
Andy Romanoff
The videos are currently on view 24 hours a day at Chung King Road, Los Angeles, from October 15 through November 15, 2020.
In addition to the exhibition in Los Angeles, the films are being screened simultaneously in storefront windows in New York City, London and Shanghai.
New York – Wallplay Network – 321 Canal Street, Chinatown
London – Protein Studios – 31 New Inn Yard, Hackney
Shanghai – Bitter – Jing’an District
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For further information visit www.womxninwindows.com
Andy Romanoff Words: https://medium.com/stories-ive-been-meaning-to-tell-you
Andy Romanoff Pictures: https://andyromanoff.zenfolio.com/
