Being an artist and being a parent is not easy. I have great admiration for artists who not only balance both but who also find ways to creatively and humorously engage with the experience of having children in their work.
The show title comes from the behavior of toddlers, who haven't quite figured out how to play with other kids their age, but happily sit side by side engaged in their own respective activities. With computers and smart phones more and more kids of all ages practice parallel play.
The artists in this show are also engaged in parallel play, making work that is about being a parent as well as returning to their own childhoods. Using childhood toys, participating in the activities of being a kid, looking at the frequent accidents or the domestic chaos of homes filled with children are the subjects of this work. There is pleasure and reflection in momentarily merging the roles of childhood and parenthood. For me the work acts as a reminder to appreciate the moment, which goes by very quickly.
- Ellen Garvens, Curator
