Art has the ability to transport us beyond what we see on a daily basis. It has the ability to transport us into these worlds of imagination where emotions, identity, and connection intersect. Saya Woolfalk’s solo show is exactly that, as it transports the viewer into what she refers to as her “Empathic Universe.”
The Woolfalk series, “The Intergalactic World,” has meaning beyond just being art. this is an exploration of a universe that exists as active and interconnected by use of color, storytelling, and visual installations through the use of materials to provoke thought about the human experience and connectivity with a diverse group of peoples.
The series has a powerful message: “We are all part of this intergalactic universe.” It is a message that every person, every culture and every living being is interconnected. When one enters Woolfalk’s universe, the lines of demarcation between science fiction, spirituality, and real-life issues become increasingly blurred.
The works of Woolfalk are often a fusion of fantasy and reality. The characters, clothing, and worlds that Woolfalk creates in her series take place in the future but are filled with real-life human emotions and human experiences. This allows the viewer to see themselves in Woolfalk’s world of fantasy.
The Exhibition Explores Empathy
Empathy is central to this solo exhibition by Woolfalk. The exhibition focuses on the connection between people despite cultural, gender, race, or identity differences.
Empathic Universe creates an environment of connectedness and compassion over hostility. Given the prevalence of separation and misunderstanding in our present time, this exhibition is timely.
All installations within the exhibition have an associated story. The use of these pieces’ multilayered and colourful material encourages the viewer to slow down and really look at the piece. While walking through the installation, the viewer becomes a participant in the piece’s story.
As a symbolic artist, Woolfalk uses symbols within her pieces to reference action toward a place where we can evolve emotionally, in addition to evolving technologically.
The interactive quality of the exhibition increases the experience of the viewer by combining colour, sound, and form in an engaging way which activates the viewer’s senses to generate their own feelings towards concepts such as interconnectedness, shared experiences and unity.
To clarify, Saya Woolfalk’s exhibition is much more than an art exhibit; it is an invitation to explore an alternative paradigm more compassionate world. Woolfalk’s “Empathic Universe” indicates that although we have come from different places and spaces in life – we exist in the same universe and thus share cosmological space.
