Brooklyn-New York-based artist CJ Hendry has unveiled her latest exhibition titled “BLONDE,” a beautiful series a hyper-real drawings featuring different types of wigs. In press about the exhibition Hendry, who is brunette, explained,” I was toying with names like Big Wig, Crown, Locks, Snatched, Mane, Incognito, Alter Ego but for some reason, Blonde just stuck. Sometimes names of exhibitions don’t always make sense but seeing as I’m a brunette, I’ve heard that blondes have more fun so I thought ‘Fuck it let me get in on this action.'”
Further she added, “Wigs are a more under-utilized transformative tool and in my opinion one of the quickest ways to instantly transform oneself and play with one’s identity. I generally see wigs being used to accompany a costume but I am more interested in utilizing ONLY wigs to mimic how you might be feeling one day, or who you may want to become, or what you want to say without having to say anything at all. Hair is such a personal identifier and if your hair is to all of a sudden alter, you can play another character in your own movie.”
Hendry has become known for exhibitions that include a playful experiential element, setting her apart from the traditional white box gallery setting. Commenting on her intention for the “BLONDE” exhibit, she explained, “I like to think about wigs as a full concept. Just hanging finished drawings on a wall is not interesting to me. I like to tell a fully fleshed-out story and in my mind, that means building a concept that makes sense to my idea. Writing an artist statement/blurb on a wall does not appeal to me so I build the blurb instead.”
Designed as a whimsical beauty salon where visitors can try on a gifted wig, the exhibit also includes a chocolate shop stocked with an array of Tony’s Chocolonely chocolate bars which are wrapped with a “BLONDE” label. One-hundred percent of the chocolate sales will be donated to the Aly Forney Center, an organization that supports LGBTQ youth in New York.
“BLONDE” opens to the public from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM on December 10th, 2021 inside Brookfield Place shopping center located at 230 Vesey Street in Manhattan.
Enjoy a look at the installation below courtesy of CJ Hendry studio.
