Writing

At a relentless pace 5 trillion plastic bags per year—1 million every hour—these whisper-thin conveniences accumulate into an unbearable burden. Seemingly weightless in our hands, these plastic bags amass an estimated 27.5 million metric tons of waste annually—a crushing force and a mere statistic in the ever-growing impact of consumerism on our environment.

Kelsey Merreck Wagner’s trash weavings transform this staggering weight into something tangible, something undeniable. The discarded plastics are not just refuse but artifacts of our collective impact. Each warp and weft is a memory we can not discard, intertwining individual moments of consumption into artworks that are both physically heavy and emotionally inescapable—beautiful and repulsive in equal measure.

But the weight of these weaving—and the weight of plastic pollution—is more than a statistic. Weight is a reckoning. It is the mental toll of witnessing environmental degradation, the anxiety of knowing our convenience gambles against our future. Kelsey Merreck Wagner’s work invites us to feel this weight, to carry it, and perhaps, to rethink the burdens we leave behind.

I Wanna Be A Cowboy Baby explores the concept of the Wild West which idealizes core American values including individualism, freedom, and ruggedness, and glorifies America as the land of opportunity. Through a lens inspired by the iconic Marlboro brand, this exhibition delves into America’s consumerist culture and captures the allure of the brand’s graphic identity. Marlboro’s imagery is as seductive and addictive as the cigarettes themselves. The infusion of Marlboro motifs and minimalist design channels the brand’s internationally spread Americana essence. 

Marlboro conjures imagery of cowboys which, by exuding a sense of Americana and individuality, strengthens and justifies America’s capitalistic culture. The image of the cowboy reminds me of my upbringing. I was raised on a horse farm by my parents–my dad cut and broke horses and my mom was a horse trainer–where strength, individuality, and hard work were highly valued. Surrounded by rodeo culture, I encountered people who looked like the Marlboro man–the rugged, tough, and hardworking “Ideal American man.” I Wanna Be A Cowboy Baby invites viewers to ponder the depths of consumerism’s influence and face the complexities of the allure of the American cowboy.

Tatyana Dyakonov’s cityscapes shimmer between memory and imagination, bringing forth colorful dreamlike visions of towns that could have been — or might yet be. Raised in Moscow, Russia, and now living in North Carolina, Dyakonov draws inspiration from the architecture of the past. Her work channels the spirit of place while dissolving boundaries of time and geography. Whether reconstructing a 19th-century snowy street from an old photograph or conjuring a vibrant version of a Southern town, she composes from feeling.

Her paintings invite viewers into quiet, unpeopled worlds — urban scenes in which color becomes emotion and history becomes atmosphere. This absence of human figures is not lonely, but freeing: “It makes me think that I own the place,” the artist says, echoing a dreamlike sense of personal connection to the imagined cities she brings to life. With a palette tuned to joy and a mind drawn to the past, Dyakonov’s art opens a portal: one where architecture becomes story, and color becomes a dream you can walk through.