PROTO-HEROINE

Opening Saturday, June 28th 4-7p
June 28 - July 26, 2025


Jenny Hata Blumenfield
Cheryl Humphreys
Lois Lane
Jane Swavely
Vanessa Zarate

In Gertrude Stein’s canonical stream-of-conscious poem, Sacred Emily, she wrote, “Rose is a rose is a rose.” In Proto-Heroine at Sarah Brook Gallery, the collection of works seem to be saying, “Woman is a woman is a woman.”

Stein dedicated the poem to her lover, Alice. Sarah is dedicating this show to all women, specifically mothers. Stein’s poem can appear to be disconnected or disjointed, but that general feeling is emblematic of all existence, is it not? This is especially true for women, who tend to have unreasonable expectations placed upon them and often receive a disproportionately disappointing amount of gratitude for the amount that they do simply to keep this world spinning.

The repetition of Stein’s words offer a sense of flexibility and fluidity in context and meaning. The intangible connections made between touch and tone within each of the works included in this exhibition offer a sense of grounded introspection and reverence. In times like these, we must examine ourselves and the world around us with more scrutiny than ever before; that said, we must never let go of love or lose hope. Proto-Heroine is full of love; it is full
of hope.

–  Keith J. Varadi, June 2025