I had a show at Epiphany Center for the Arts. It ran from Nov. 15, 2024 to January 3rd 2025. I used the Catacombs Gallery.


Since 2011, Holly Holmes has explored the tension between abstraction and representation. Her work resonates with the facts, readings, and translations of life’s elements, which she conveys through recurring themes, forms, textures, and colors. Travel, whether daily commutes or overseas trips, plays a crucial role in her art. Holmes meticulously chronicles her experiences, translating them into paintings and tufted rugs. She creates sketches on the go, using them in the studio alongside her memories and emotions to produce images that reflect direct observation and emotional resonance

Holmes’ process involves constant examination and reexamination, which extends to her painting and color mixing with yarn. Recently, she has been creating paired tufted and painted works, allowing her to make creative decisions fluidly. While acrylic paint offers immediacy and ease of experimentation, working with yarn is more time-consuming, requiring careful blending and consideration. By alternating between these mediums, Holmes can test an idea in one place and realize and refine it in the other. These works are exhibited in conversation with each other and Holmes invites gallery visitors to share in their reverberations.

The New Setup has Changed
2023

Companions
Riverside Art Center
Opening September 8th, 2024
Exhibitions runs 9/8/24 - 10/12/24
Riverside Art Center

Solo exhibition at the Riverside Art Center opening on Sunday September 8th. My exhibition is called Companions and will feature new paintings and rugs hung side by side in the Flex Space Gallery.

Joanne Aono wrote on the show;

Holly Holmes utilizes painting and tufting to express her observations of physical spaces. Through these works, we become companions on her walks where she might sketch a view at a train station or from a porch, later combining them with her thoughts on current events and associated emotional reactions.

The paintings are rendered in flat, tight strokes with subtle patterns reminiscent of Phillip Guston, while the rug weavings bring to mind the abstract textiles of Anni Albers and Sophie Taeuber-Arp, bridging fine art with exceptional craft. As the eye wanders through Holmes’ vibrant blocks of color, it jumps from one angle to the next, only to be sprung about by a caressing curve. We flip between the edges and the shapes, conjuring up glimpses of familiar objects, then we step back and get lost once again. The titles give us clues and oftentimes affirmation of a perceived form in their simple poetry.

Like companion planting, where each organism provides a benefit to those adjacent, Holmes’ paintings and wall rugs nurture each other. Our experience is enhanced by the conversations between the artworks as we notice subtle nuances when comparing similar sections within separate pieces. The patterned speckles in her paintings evoke the texture of the yarns, while the hard edges of the paintbrush strokes contrast with the rough borders of the rug tufts. We notice a repeated shape or color from one piece to the next or across the room, giving a sense of cohesion throughout the exhibition.

– Joanne Aono

I'm in a group show up right now at Dominican University, 7900 W. Division, River Forest. Il. The Slowly, With Care, show is up till March 6th, and has wonderful works by Joanna Aono, Sherri Denault, Kate Ingold, Jeffly Gabriela Molina, and Gwendolyn Zabicki.
It's worth the trip.

O'Connor Art Gallery
Dominican University | 7900 W. Division St. | River Forest, IL 60305
January 29 – March 6, 2020

Videokaffe will take part in Togetherism, at Co-Prosperity Sphere this November.

I am in a show at Kunsthuis Gallery, Shades of Clay, opening in November.

I will also be in a group show at Dominican University in 2020

I have been invited to be a member of Videokaffe an international artist collective. The Joshua Tree, an interactive sculpture, standing 17 ft high, in Nacka, Sweden was my inaugural art work with the group.

Terrain Biennial 1 Oct - 17 Nov.
A Transponder, a weaving from the trees, will be at Compound Yellow.

In Pursuit of Error is a research project that explores the unintended and unexpected in photography – images that wander from the path of convention by accident or design.

Two of my unintended photos were posted to the project on July 5, 2019

https://inpursuitoferror.co.uk/contributions/

I am experimenting with Patreon to help support my art practice. I have a number of levels people can support my projects at including insights into my working method, haikus, postcards and original works of art. I’d really appreciate your feedback and support! Thank you!

https://www.patreon.com/hollyholmes