FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 2024
m OTHER: Step into Our World
New York, NY – m OTHER, a multidisciplinary exhibition exploring stepmotherhood in relation to the modern family unit and society at large, curated by Blakelee Pieroni, opens at The Canvas 3.0 gallery with workshops and live performances. The exhibition is on view March 13-17, 2024, with workshops and live performances on March 15, 2024, 4:00 – 8:00 PM.
The exhibition m OTHER is a provocative showcase of artwork that explores the overlooked topic of stepmotherhood. Through a range of live performance art, installations, workshops and various visual mediums, m OTHER presents a powerful narrative that challenges the societal norms surrounding stepmothers. The core of the exhibition reveals the isolation and loss of personhood one must endure when entering the role. The exhibit shines a light on the oppressive and undervalued efforts that stepmothers face, while various artists produce real-time creative research and data in a safe setting away from usual family cohabitation.
Pieroni’s work encourages visitors to question the accustomed family norms and societal pressures that keep these marginalized groups voiceless. m OTHER is a vital showcase that analyzes the complexities of stepmotherhood and invites visitors to engage with the issues surrounding modern-day family dynamics. Pieroni’s work is a compelling reminder that subject-object dualism remains a burden on human behavior. To achieve freedom from stigma, statistics, and stereotypes, there needs to be a collective unraveling of the definition of family, through detachment of conventional patterns and territorial principles.
m OTHER the exhibition coincides with m OTHER: The Misunderstood Other Mother documentary, premiering at Through Women’s Eyes Film Festival on March 9, 2024. This documentary delves into the challenges faced by stepmothers, dispelling the “Wicked Stepmother” stereotype. Through the insights from six women, the film aims to amplify their voices, shedding light on the psychological strains stepmothers endure. Virtual and in-person screenings available: Through Women’s Eyes Film Festival Virtual Screening.
m OTHER: The Misunderstood Other Mother. Director: Clare Louise Cheyne. Photo: Tianna Brown, Kayla Naije, Maya Dwyer
Details
m OTHER
Exhibition on view: March 13-17, 2024
Workshops and performances: March 15, 2024
Visiting Hours: 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM
Location: The Canvas 3.0 in The Shops at The Oculus in Westfield World Trade Center.
Schedule of Events on March 15, 2024
Dr. Lisa Doodson, psychologist and stepfamily expert, will be guiding private one-to-one videos throughout the day.
Wednesday Martin, Ph.D., author of New York Times bestseller Stepmonster, will have her full-length interview from the documentary available for individual listening in the back room throughout the day.
4:00 PM – Naja Hall, founder of VIP Stepmom and Blended and Black, will conduct a live interview with a Q&A session.
5:00 PM – Round Table discussion with Brenda Ockun, Publisher, StepMom Magazine, Naja Hall, and Blakelee Pieroni.
6:00 PM – Chloe Caldwell, writer featured in The New York Times and The Cut, will lead a writing workshop titled “Writing The Stepmom Experience.”
7:00 PM – Not Invisible: Vividly Alive, a long-form performance art piece featuring Blakelee Pieroni and various artists and dancers. The performance will be accompanied afterwards by refreshments.
About Blakelee Pieroni
Pieroni holds a dance media degree from Marymount Manhattan, complemented by training in oil painting and Sound Design. Integrating these mediums, she has shaped a unique artistic practice showcased in NYC over the past decade. Recognized for choreography, painting, and digital performance art, her work has garnered attention in publications like Time Out, Creatrix, Up Mag, Blockster, SuperChief, and ChaShaMa. In 2023, Pieroni curated “m OTHER,” a group exhibition for stepmothers, evolving into a documentary premiering at the 25th Through Women’s Eyes Film Festival in March 2024. Invited to perform at Art Basel Miami, she presented “Labor of Materiality,” encouraging audience engagement through a chipped egg that scanned to a petition for the Women’s Protection Act of 2023 advocating reproductive freedom.
Currently in residency at The Canvas 3.0 in The Shops at the Oculus in Westfield World Trade Center, she utilizes “Meta Betties,” her concept art collectible minted on the Ethereum Blockchain, to pave the way for digital activism. Pieroni plans to curate exhibitions in the space to creatives of all mediums exploring tech’s intersection with movement, human behavior, and fashion.
Website: https://www.fortheobserver.com/
Instagram: @blakelee_mover