Addressing the Moon at Gallery NAGA

June 12, 2024
by Robin Hauck

It may seem like we live in a time when more divides than unites us. But regardless of our beliefs, we all look up at night and see the same moon. Luminous, mysterious, fickle and constant, the moon reminds us that we can still feel awe. We can still feel peace when under the spell of a force greater than any issue or conflict, greater than all of us combined.

A new show at Gallery NAGA takes the moon as its organizing principle and guiding symbolic motif. The 18 artists brought together by Powell Fine Art Advisory, who curated the show, interpret and honor the moon in a variety of styles and mediums, some more successfully than others. 

Before the moon wanes again \ we shall come together
— Audrey Lorde, from “On a Night of the Full Moon”

The title of the show refers to a little know poem by Nathaniel Hawthorne. “Address to the Moon,” doesn’t have the ominous creepiness of “The Raven” or the gut-punch weight of “The Scarlet Letter.” It’s moody and sentimental, revealing the sense of longing and supernatural power attributed to the moon in the 19th century.

Today, as Space X, Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin and other billionaire-funded companies race into space like covered wagons full of zealous pioneers, the moon seems more and more familiar, so it’s intriguing to see the various ways local artists perceive it. Of the 18 exhibited artists, a few stand out.

Read the full article on Misstropolis, here.

Cig Harvey, “Sadie and the Moon, Lake Megunticook, Maine” 2013. Photograph on aluminum, 28 x 28 in., ed. of 7. Courtesy of Robert Klein Gallery (Boston).