The human experience is filled with unpredictability. This concept is seen by most as incredibly daunting and sometimes terrifying, especially in the last few years. But, for humans like Tacoma-based artist Lydia Jewel Gerard, the unexpected can also be seen as hopeful and beautiful. “Night Light,” running for the month of February 2022 at the Julian Peña Gallery, is a solo exhibit showcasing Gerard’s new ink paintings that combine traditional and digital art. Unpredictability is a big part of her process in terms of the medium as she lets the ink’s journey on paper unfold on its own terms. Immediacy also plays its role as she puts emphasis on processing deep emotion: “I don’t show up at my studio to think, I go there to feel.” And, the part about unpredictability that we can find comforting is found through looking at her work: A sea of bright, vivid colors conversing with each other and the space around them in a way that creates a hazy texture, all with a sense of playfulness, dreaminess and immersion. Then, there's the beaming light that plays a prominent role. Everything is free flowing not just in the way the light, color and space interact with each other but also the very concept of the artist liberating herself in surrendering to the unexpected. Even as Gerard was exploring heavy subject matter like COVID in the creation of these pieces, she has brought a sense of lightness that we can enjoy and find refuge in. The organic, ephemeral quality of “Night Light” reminds us we are living in the moment and that, despite all the hardships we’ve been going through in the last few years, the moment can be something beautiful and worth disappearing into.

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Show curated by Shirene Soleiman.

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