RANEE HENDERSON:
Palms up for the peanut gallery
January 13 - February 25, 2023
Public reception: February 3, 5:30 – 8 pm
Peanuts to them, Mom, 2022, oil on canvas, 32 x 24 inches
Steven Zevitas Gallery is pleased to present Palms up for the peanut gallery, an exhibition of new paintings by Ranee Henderson. The exhibition will be on view from January 13 – February 25, 2023, with an artist’s reception on Friday, February 3rd from 5:30 – 8:00 PM.
How do we confront trauma? How do we reclaim our humanity? For Henderson, these questions are at the forefront of her artistic practice. In 2019, Henderson overheard her uncle say to her mother, “Face it Kim, we’re just peanuts to them.” This sentiment suggests an exasperated acceptance of being cast aside as an afterthought. The peanut is, after all, a ubiquitous food substance that is generic in form, inexpensive and, ultimately, disposable. It is also a multi-layered object, one whose anthropomorphic form conceals valuable nourishment within.
Henderson reclaims this image; in an act of resistance and resilience, she chooses to be a peanut. Three portraits are grouped together, each one featuring a tenderly rendered nut teetering on top of their respective bodies. They stand together as a family: the artist, her sister and her mother.
In Puppeteers poke and prod but we eat good every damn day, we see another image often referenced in Henderson’s work. The Booger Mask, a nod to the artist’s Cherokee roots, acts as a reminder to stay vigilant against eminent threats. Marionette-string arms extend from the mask and build to jabbing fingers, disrupting a barrel full of peanuts. A ghostly sprinkling of onlookers crowd around the scene. Is this the peanut gallery? As the title of the exhibition suggests, our palms are up, unsure if we are begging for their approval or praising them for their comments.
Amongst this duality A few things are certain: Henderson’s satirical wit, her biting, but affectionate ache for truth-telling and, above all else, the power of the peanut.
