Behind VA Shadows

Conference recap from @alltimesoychailover : @arlis_na Conference in Montreal was a busy, full, and gratifying experience! Behind VA Shadows Catalog was introduced at the “Artists’ Books as Sites of Resistance” panel and the full-house audience got to touch and flip through our publication! We also learned about the wonderful work and research of fellow panelists Christine Walde, Fine Arts Librarian @uviclibraries and Caroline Cleveland, Head Librarian @kimbellartmuseum . A fellow former VA from the Broad reached out and we always love meeting fellow VAs!!! Artists’ files, artists’ books, and zines are at the centre of the conference’s many vibrant discussions on resistance. We learned about very important preservation work for contemporary art practices, such as the Contemporary Catalogs Project at @metlibrary and the Collaborative ART Archive (CARTA) by @internetarchive and the New York Art Resources Consortium. Among the many many great tours and events: we got to see the exhibit “Petits actes de résistance / Small Acts of resistance” featuring works by ARLIS members at @artexte , among the wonderful collection at Artexte; a tour of the library, archives, and reading rooms at @canadiancentreforarchitecture and @natgallerycan . We are so happy to be able to participate in the collective reflection on resistance with professionals from the GLAM sector! Thank you to everyone who contributed to these importance conversations and thank you to everyone who spent time to learn about our project and say hi! 💌 1-2: Behind VA Shadows Catalog at “Artists’ Books as Sites of Resistance” 3: “Catalog of the World: Building a Universal Archive” by Holly Phillips @metlibrary 4: “Resisting Ephemerality: Web Archiving Online Arts Content Before It Disappears” by Sarah Beth Seymore @internetarchive and Sumitra Duncan @frickcollection 5: Artist and founder of @artexte Angela Grauerholz giving the keynote speech 6-7: Opening reception of “Small Acts of Resistance” @artexte 8-9: Artists’ books collection at @artexte 10-12: Tour @canadiancentreforarchitecture 13-16: Tour @natgallerycan 17-18: Touristy view of Montreal and Ottawa! Thank you for tuning in! 😋🩵

Thank you all for coming out for Joanna’s reception, even through the ☔️ , and for spending time with the first iteration of THE SHELF. “when blue meets blue” is a solo exhibition by Joanna Tam rooted in her relationship to the ocean since growing up in Hong Kong. The exhibition brings together photographs of the ocean and sky from both her hometown and her new home in the U.S., creating a space to think through distance, memory, movement, and longing. For this exhibition, Joanna also invited her friend blu to contribute a poem relating to the ocean and sky. As they shared with Joanna, the poem “moon, sea, bread and blood in twenty-six acts” “is about me, you, and every single person who will stop to read it, and every person we think of in relation to each other and this poem.” During the reception, Joanna played an audio recording from blu, who attended the gathering through their voice. blu (she/they) is a self-taught writer born in Ayiti, where they lived for fifteen years before immigrating to the United States. Their work explores the sensuality of life, the politics of existence, and the textures of memory. They write to remember. Keep an eye on hypertextpoet.neocities.org to read more of their work.

DREAM RECEIVED 🔮🎐🪅🪄 One of our dreams for hosting ODE at Behind VA Shadows is to not be limited by the physical size of the space, but instead to think through how a long, narrow storefront can still center community space-making, forming third space in one of the most commercialized areas in the city. In this inaugural ODE, DPI creates a new infrastructure for dreamwork inside of our linear space, inviting the public to activate collective memory as a way of imagining possible futures together. The rain even makes the inner space more inimitable. What stayed with us most was how many collected dreams returned to one word: “together.” It made us feel hopeful again about people power, and about how even the smallest spaces can hold collective possibility.

Shadowbox, hello! Meet our second location of Behind VA Shadows, kicked off today with our dear friend Isola’s new work ( still install in progress! )Located at One Brattle Square, Shadowbox is a 96” high, 32” wide, 2 ft deep space previously hosted by our friend Kyoko. Small in scale but open in possibility, Shadowbox embraces the overlooked architectural gap, the in-between space, the leftover corner that quietly exists alongside the city’s larger structures. Through this tiny storefront-like site, we are interested in thinking about how alternative spaces can interrupt the expected relationship between public space, visibility, labor, and art making. As we take care of Shadowbox, we hope to continue promoting working artists in museums and beyond, while expanding Behind VA Shadows’ ongoing commitment to creating spaces for experimentation, encounter, and collective visibility in Harvard Sq & Brattle Sq. Image 1: Isola installing at Shadowbox @iggyartofficial Video 2: we learned how to use immersive view on Google, hope you get a sense of how close our two locations are, meaning don’t forget to check out one another when you are in Harvard sq/ Brattle sq Image 3, 4: unofficial Shadowbox opening, our sidewalk gathering continues in Brattle sq now

BRAVO to 2026 Boston Art Writing Fellows Garry, Christian and Rene for three thorough reviews on our current solo show “when blue meets blue” by Joanna Tam @joanna_tam . our good friends @miguellcaba @an.ha.n @viviantranart ‘s show “ A Shell, A Peel, A Pause” at amazing @unboundvisualarts also our neighborhood bestie ( who will be turning 18 this month! ) @gallery263 featuring Hannah Lathams’ @hlatham6 “Ripple in Still Water” We are enjoying the reviews crafted by these amazing young fellows @bostonartreview x @praise.shadows.art . Thanks you all again for making such beautiful work and spreading the message of and about art through your writings!

we are so happy to receive some drop offs for The Shelf and so looking forward to welcome the ones on the way over, here is a quick look of the 2D formats we have so far before we finally open the door to welcome you to see them in person on May 9th! Big thank you to Ayla @ayla.y.t who welcomed all the formats and all the artists made your way to our space to drop off your work💕 Image 1: Two Artists Talking @two.artists.talking ( @evalundsager @mccall.hollister @cassidywestjohn ) featuring conversations between students and Boston-Based Artists: @brooke_stewart_art @ajani_peace @riabrodell @yuwenwuart @driveraclerfeuille @dtwheel @daniellejabrams and David Antonio Cruz. Orbis Editions @orbiseditions from Jessica @jessica_hankey0 Image 2: how to clean a house Image 3: ABC: A Lesson in History Image 4: Unity! Image 5: Double Vision Image 6: For Distant Viewing by @kaibarkerdennett Image 7: mountain box by @elementalfrost

Montreal, we are coming! On May 4, Nemo will be joining the panel “Artists’ Books as Sites of Resistance” to present Behind VA Shadows’ inaugural catalog published in 2025 at the Art Libraries Society of North America (ARLIS/NA) @arlis_na Annual Conference in Montreal, QC, Canada. Titling her presentation “Behind VA Shadows Catalog: A Socially-Engaged Art Project’s Approach to Resist Disappearance,” Nemo is very excited to discuss it with art librarians and information professionals in the GLAM sector. Speaking in her roles as the Editorial and Archival Lead of Behind VA Shadows and a graduate student in archival studies and libraries and information studies, Nemo will share the stories behind our process of making the catalog. Looking from the frameworks of community archives and artists’ books, Nemo reflects on how this publication can serve as an archives of Behind VA Shadows’ work and the community we have been building. Outside of the institutional space, Behind VA Shadows catalog exists a more permanent piece of evidence in telling the stories of VAs and celebrating our existence and creativity. We are excited to be with Erin Rutherford, the moderator of this panel along with the stellar speakers Caroline Clavell, Head Librarian @kimbellartmuseum , Christine Walde, Fine Arts Librarian @universityofvictoria @uviclibraries . The catalog is made possible because of the design and editorial team @wenbin.me @alltimesoychailover @yolandaheyang_arts with the support from @collectivefuturesfund

We are beyond excited to have Department of Public Imagination ( DPI ) @deptofpublicimagination as our inaugural ODE ( One-Dimensional Events ) guest. From 2-5pm on May 9th, Department of Public Imagination will perform new infrastructure for dreamwork inside of our linear space, inviting the public to activate collective memory in order to imagine possible futures. This ODE event will happen right after Joanna’s @joanna_tam exhibition “ when blue meets blue” from 1-2pm. You will have opportunity to experience ODE, meet artist Joanna, and bring your work in progress project to work at our Street Studio space hosted by @nam1yam1 The Shelf will be activated with the exciting selected submissions of artists’ diverse 2D formats. Photo credits: Lauren Miller @lolamillz5

One-Dimensional Events . Video 3: Mimi @ntfallon prepare their performance as part of “ The Student Visitors “ curated by @klediastudios Video 4: Eben’s After Flood solo show @ebenhaines Video 5: Isola’s solo show “Tired Clichès”, friends talking inside @iggyartofficial Video 6: Performance Day of “ The Students Visitors” Video 7 : Yorgos @yorgosphoto installing “ Instant Permanence” curated by @disparate_projects @thecuratedfridge Video 8: beautiful installation solo show of @joanna_tam “when blue meets blue” our most recent show in the gallery Image 9: Nasiri and Maithili helping patching and preparing the wall @artbymaithili @nasirisartpage Image 10: Eben helping installing BehindVA Shadows sign, emotional support from Shahin @sibs27 Image 11: body engagement on the Field Study of Leaning Bodies/ Traces Image 13: Maia and Calvin installing group show Rupture curated by @merp.slev with assistant from @xihu.arfa Video 14: film night curated by @cinewaverampant ( in this case our one dimensional space is totally muted in favor of the outdoor engagement!) Video 15: Patrick helping deinstall the show On my way to work curated by @alltimesoychailover Last four videos and images are the other moments that make me thing of one-dimensional space: 1. Storage area at Mill Gallery @boscenterforarts 2. Sorting line Revolution Recovery @rair_philly 3. Maithili’s thesis sculpture on body & confinement 4. The lady who uses a wild flower as the shade

when blue meets blue unfolds as both reflection and invitation, holding the ocean as a site of trauma and care, of movement and connection. Rooted in Joanna’s lifelong relationship with the sea, shaped by her upbringing in Hong Kong and her present life in the United States, the exhibition brings together photographs of ocean and sky across these geographies. Through these images, the work lingers on the shifting meanings of distance, belonging, and transformation. Extending this dialogue, Joanna invited her collaborator blu to contribute the poem moon, sea, bread and blood in twenty-six acts, a text that speaks to the entanglement of self and others: “about me, you, and every single person who will stop to read it.” Together, the exhibition offers a space to pause, to drift, and to imagine otherwise in uncertain times.

Our new show is up, and we cannot wait to show you what Joanna brings to our space while spring is blossoming. Joanna was the co-founder and co-operator of the artist-run exhibition and studio space, Howard Art Project, in Dorchester. She also worked as the gallery coordinator at the MassArt's Brant Gallery. We started this conversation two years ago in front of our gallery on side walk, now this conversation lands as “ when blue meets blue” : when blue meets blue Joanna Tam, in collaboration with blu @joanna_tam “when blue meets blue” is rooted in Joanna’s fascination with looking at, listening to, and floating in the ocean since she was a child growing up in Hong Kong. It features an installation of photographs of the ocean and the sky of her hometown and her new home in the U.S. For this exhibition, Joanna also invited her friend, blu, to write a poem relating to the ocean and the sky. As they told Joanna, the poem, “moon, sea, bread and blood in twenty-six acts”, “is about me, you, and every single person who will stop to read it, and every person we think of in relation to each other and this poem.” Joanna would like to thank Knox Neon @knoxneonpvd for making the neon sign. About artists: Joanna Tam (she/her) is a Hong Kong-born visual artist and educator who lives and works on the ancestral and unceded lands of the Wampanoag, the Nipmuc, and the Massachusett People, also known as Boston. Her interdisciplinary practice examines migration, the idea of safety, and one’s connection to places through video, photography, performance, installation, and community engagement. blu (she/they) is a self-taught writer born in Ayiti, where they lived for fifteen years before immigrating to the United States. Their work explores the sensuality of life, the politics of existence, and the textures of memory. They write to remember. Keep an eye on hypertextpoet.neocities.org to see more from them.

May 9, 1-2pm we will host reception of “when blue meets blue” the solo show of @joanna_tam in collaboration with blu. The show is now on view at our space, we are so excited to share more soon, but for now save the date if you want to come meet the artist Joanna and join our Street Studio “ Meet me half way” craft making afternoon on the blocked street. 🫶