Artist Statement

As a disabled Black woman, I have a desire for people to accept or appreciate me for both my surface and what’s below it; to humanize me not because of my appearance, but despite it. My paintings channel the complexity of my identity. Through bold colors, sly references to art history, fractured patterns, and overflowing viscera. I create a surface of works that are richly layered, both demanding attention and refusing any simple legibility.

My anthropomorphic figures are another way for me to visualize my own body. Their irregular extremities are intended to express a state of atrophy—a wasting away of muscles—which is a symptom of many physical disabilities. I render them joyful and beautiful, reclining and covered in gems. The sculptures’ long, lumpy limbs are adorned with pearls, sparkles, colorful braids, and other markers of exuberant femininity.

Ambivalence is a core theme in my work. These figures exist on the border of abstraction and representation. It is impossible to tell if they are inside or outside, or if they show the interior or exterior of their bodies. I’m interested in the evocation of nostalgia for girlhood, while also imagining possible futures. Neither utopian nor dystopian, I instead produce bodies that refuse to be contained.

Bio

Victoria Dugger is a visual artist currently based in Athens, Georgia. She holds a BFA from Columbus State University (2016) and an MFA in Painting from the Lamar Dodd School of Art at the University of Georgia (2022). Dugger works in painting, mixed media, and sculpture, creating pieces that challenge traditional categories and explore new modes of self-expression and embodiment. Her work examines her identity as a Black, disabled woman, blending playful compositions with grotesque imagery.

In July 2021, Dugger had her debut solo show “Out of Body” with Sargent’s Daughters in New York City, which received attention from Vogue, Hyperallergic, artnet, ARTnews, Whitehot Magazine, and artdaily. She was also selected as a 2023 Georgia Woman to Watch by the National Museum for Women in the Arts and has been featured in FRIEZE and The New York Times. Dugger is represented by Sargent’s Daughters.

Artist Statement

In my work, I explore ideas of nature and its transformation over time. Addressing matters of ecological concern, my work frequently stems from field exercises both close to home and in remote locations with acute geophysical identities, such as rivers, ice fields, oceans, and forests. An ongoing reflection upon the mythos and policies of exploration in a globalized age is central to my practice. Working across media and conceptual paradigms, my expressions offer a vision of our landscapes while inviting consideration of its delicate ecology and fraught geopolitical condition in a world where human civilization and the natural landscape are intrinsically linked. As such, I use a mix of reclaimed, recycled, and natural materials alongside mass-manufactured products to reflect and showcase the intrinsic conflict of human existence on our planet. My goal is to create experiences available to all audiences in an effort to share my witness of the impact climate change has on our planet through the use of light, media, and sound.

About the Artist

Rachel Moser is an interdisciplinary artist and educator based in central Kentucky. Her works feature an array of natural and manufactured materials presented through sculpture, video, installation, and sound. Moser graduated from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle with a BFA in Motion and Graphic Design, and earned an MFA in Studio Art from the University of Kentucky. Influences and inspiration come from Moser’s years of immersion in movement practice and performing as a ballet dancer prior to moving into the field of visual arts. In 2019, Moser received a grant from the Great Meadows Foundation to fund her travel to Svalbard for the Arctic Circle Residency, providing the foundation for her current exhibition. Her work has been shown throughout Kentucky, at places such as the Morlan Gallery at Translyvania University, Georgetown College, Lexington Art League, and the Parachute Factory. Her art has also been shown nationally at Waldemer A. Schmidt Art Gallery at Wartbug College in Iowa, and San Luis Obispo Museum of Art in California. Moser’s work has also been shown internationally in Svalbard, Norway as part of the Arctic Circle Residency. Her work is an ongoing study of climate change and human impact on the planet. Moser is currently Professor of Digital Art at Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond, Kentucky.