UVA’s Arthaus Gallery
43 N. Beacon St., Allston, MA 02134
January 19 – March 22, 2024
Opening Night with the artists: Thursday February 1, 2024
Send the Other Half: Mail Art Workshop
Often used to describe radioactive or chemical decay, the term “half-life” takes on alternate meanings through other interpretations presented by three artists: Matthew Okazaki, Madeline Lee, and Maria Fong. “Half-life” interpretations include: decay, both material and non-material; what happens in half a life; a measurement of time linked to fundamental change; halving of identity; being counterpart to something that once existed.
Applied to scenes of everyday life, objects of resilience, rituals, and processes of making, the artists explore making meaning out of the passage of time, forging new understandings of ourselves and what makes us whole – or sometimes, just half.
Madeline Lee is a visual artist and collaborator who explores the intersections of identity and place. Her work is based in observing people, environmental shifts and the subtle processes that create our daily lives. She is captivated by: food as storytelling; the creation of home(s); attention; observation and unraveling objectivity; the edges where things meet. Madeline grew up near Cleveland, Ohio and has been based in the Somerville-Cambridge area since 2015. Working in community development by day, Madeline pursues place-based connection in her work and has participated in exhibits through local arts organizations including Unbound Visual Arts (Allston-Brighton/Boston), Piano Craft Gallery (South End/Boston), Mosesian Center for the Arts (Watertown), The Umbrella Arts Center (Concord), and Pao Arts Center (Chinatown/Boston). Madeline has a B.A. from Tufts University in Architectural Studies and Environmental Studies with minors in Studio Art and Urban Studies.
Matthew Okazaki is an artist, designer, and educator based out of Boston, Massachusetts.
Okazaki is founder of the architecture practice Field Office LLC, and a principal at Architecture for Public Benefit, a benefit corporation providing design services for mission-driven organizations in the Greater Boston area. He holds a Master of Architecture from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design with commendation and a Bachelor of Science in Applied Mathematics from UCLA.
Okazaki is a Professor of the Practice in the Department of the History of Art and Architecture at Tufts University. He has previously taught at Northeastern University, Brandeis University, and Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design.
Maria Fong is an artist from Berkeley, California. A 2021 graduate of the BFA program at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University, Maria works in hand drawn and stop motion animation, drawing, performance art, and bookmaking. Maria’s collaborative artworks explore racialized and politicized spaces, community building, and participatory storytelling.