PARK Magazine

ARTS
“ THERE’S THIS
INCREDIBLE KIND
OF EXCHANGE AND
IT WAS SUCH A
BEAUTIFUL
EXPERIENCE TO
WORK WITH THEM
AND BRING THE
SERIES INTO THE
WORLD.”
the pandemic. Laura Jane’s artistic perspective can be
seen through these works where the dancers, impressionistic
and solitary, become forms traced in space.
“Everything just came together. It was a real gift to be
able to work with collaborators of such great distinction.
I might not have had access to any of this at any other
time but was able to collaborate during this pause when
the ballet company was on hiatus. The images are dark
and magnetic, and the dancers’ own movements make
their identities less clear. There’s this incredible kind of
exchange and it was such a beautiful experience to work
with them and bring the series into the world.”
With an opening in Toronto and representation in
galleries throughout the US, including Cavalier Galleries
which has locations in New York, Palm Beach and
Greenwich, Connecticut, as well as in Virgil Catherine
Gallery in Chicago, Laura Jane is most excited to share
these special pieces with both old and new collectors.
“I think that my work tends to resonate with people
more on an emotional level. It’s beautiful to see how work
moves through the world, and I feel like I have the most
wonderful collectors. Creating work that is then able to
connect with people feels great. The connection is not
just transactional, it feels like a bond. It’s the beauty of
that which keeps me going to the next one.”
Many of her followers are also huge fans of her previous
works including Soft Stories. Featuring flawed creatures
portrait-style in an almost odd and irreverent way
against natural landscapes, the project alluded to a sort
of poetry about our disconnection with nature. According
to Laura Jane, although the images themselves are
not blurred, the definitions were blurred. “It’s fun to give
permission to not have all the answers and move into
something more poetically rather than academically or
technically, etc.”
Endless Gone is another thought-provoking series
where endless landscapes trigger endless questions from
admirers who often ask where everything was taken and
how it was shot. Yet again, it is this removal of everything
but the feeling the pieces provoke which allows the viewer
to retreat into their own interpretations. “It’s about removing
information in an age where we are exhausted
with so much content and technology.”
As can be seen with her most celebrated works, especially
MA, more pause can indeed mean more meaning
– in whatever way that means for you. P
laurajanepetelko.com