Almog Shimer

Date of Award

2026

Document Type

MA Project - Restricted Access (SIA Only)

Project Type

MA Project - Curatorial Proposal

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Art Business

First Advisor

Noah Kupferman

Second Advisor

Betsy Thomas

Abstract

Persona: The Art of Self-Expression is a thematic curatorial project connecting artists across generations and geographies by investigating how identity and authorship have increasingly evolved visual vocabularies through overlapping explorations of style, thought and materials. By situating emerging voices alongside established ones, Persona creates a dialogue over space and time that recognizes shifting sensibilities but simultaneously embraces a continuum. Instead of viewing art as a historical, linear progression, Persona emphasizes the potential for such dialogue to occur in the same space and/or thematic field between energetic, emerging forces and mature understandings. Thus, Persona seeks to foreground art as an exchange of ideas whereby two seemingly disparate developments can actually respond to one another seamlessly in a timely (but timeless) manner. Persona operates through the understanding that identity and art as inquiry intrinsically engage with each other anew with each generation. Persona reveals how early-career artists are developing their voices during a time of international exposure, hybrid identities and rapid technological expansion. Persona, then, explores how the creation of self becomes a space for negotiation and reinvention, often covering up digital influences behind personal narratives. Conversely, the established artists within this exhibition are recognized for notable chapters within the lineage of visual inquiry into self, a time when identity was not constructed online but instead through material experimentation, figuration and conceptual renderings. Thus these paintings and installations present an exciting juxtaposition where different time periods naturally appeal to the same level of ambition - visibility - although obtained via different means. Additionally, this expands upon overly simplistic means of curation since systems in place for art-world approval over institutions and galleries often serve unrecognized names early on in their careers yet fail to provide the same exposure platforms later on in life; established names always get their reign despite younger talents thriving in the same exhibition and conversation. Persona steers an exhibit in another direction where established voices collaborate with emerging names where hierarchy does not dictate power but instead critical dialogue. Innovation does not belong to the younger generation. Legacy does not belong to those who've already established themselves. Both are constructed through conversation, through mediation. Thus curation becomes its own facilitation that allows for continuity instead of separation by age/historical location. The idea that connects this diverse body of artistic players is the "persona". Derived from Latin's word meaning "mask", both renderings operate upon identity development - but for different purposes and through different approaches where presenting the self reveals only certain characteristics as impetus for art or living purposes, while simultaneously hiding others along the way. Some emerge transparently as personae (pun intended) while others stand fragmented and paradoxical. Paintings, sculptures, and installations by the respective artists delve into how self can become performative, fragmented or idealized. Established artists like Egon Schiele and Franz West set the tone for self-representation/self-portraiture/self-aware performative authorship as concepts through 20th century art while contemporary contributors Yuan Fang, HyeGyeong Choi and Tony Toscani together find relevance through cultural hybridity and post-digital proliferation. As separate but connected entities, they form a constellation of varied possibilities through introspection, irony and transformation. The exhibition design mirrors this conceptual dialogue. Installed within Sotheby  Institute’s sixth-floor gallery, the space is conceived as a reflective environment that encourages both visual and psychological engagement. At its center stands Anthony James’s mirrored sculpture, 24” Transmorphic Color Cube (Solar Black), which serves as the exhibition’s literal and symbolic heart. Its luminous surfaces reflect surrounding works while simultaneously drawing the viewer into the visual field, dissolving the boundary between observer and artwork. The spatial arrangement unfolds outward from this central axis. This curatorial choreography invites visitors to navigate not a linear timeline, but a network of reflection between artist and viewer, past and present, interior and exterior. The guiding intention behind Persona is to foster empathy and recognition through art. Though separated by time, geography, and experience, the artists included in the exhibition are united by the same creative impulse: to render the intangible visible. The works on view demonstrate that acts of self expression are never just personal; they carry cultural and deep historical resonance. By presenting multiple generations in dialogue, the exhibition encourages viewers to see how the language of art evolves while maintaining a core human drive for self-definition. It also underscores the power of curatorial practice to bridge these generational divides to act as both a mirror and a conduit through which shared meaning is continually renewed. Through this intergenerational exchange, Persona: The Art of Self-Expression proposes a model of exhibition-making that is inclusive, reflexive, and forward-looking. It demonstrates that artistic identity, much like the persona itself, is always in flux, shaped by dialogue, influence, and reinterpretation. In connecting young artists with their predecessors, the exhibition not only celebrates continuity within the history of self-expression but also reveals the ever-expanding diversity of voices contributing to that history even today. It affirms that In every act of creation, whether born from experience or experiment, participates on the same timeless pursuit: the effort to understand, to represent and to share the many forms of being human through art.

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