Free Energy | Shana Kaplow — Artist Talk
Johnson Gallery, Bethel University
Bethel University presents Shana Kaplow’s multimedia work in painting, video, and sculpture in the Johnson Gallery. Kaplow's solo exhibition, "Free Energy," connects personal narrative with larger global questions. Stemming from her father’s early work with solar energy, she reflects images of power lines, oil derricks, and the sun in a curved, circular mirror, using the reflections as points of departure. The resulting artworks challenge direct perception, suggesting celestial mechanics, electromagnetic fields, or astral watchers. Kaplow works improvisationally, resulting in materially visceral artworks that embody qualities such as dissolution and luminosity. In mining these mercurial distortions, Kaplow's work reveals an instability in these entrenched structures, signaling either the brink of collapse or the potential for transformation. Shana Kaplow (b. 1962) is a visual artist based in St. Paul, MN. Her paintings, sculptures, and videos are inspired by connections between personal narrative and larger global questions.