By Emma.

March 6 – March 20, 2025 • The Blanc, 15 E 40th Street, New York

New York, NY—Waave Foundation, in partnership with The Blanc, is proud to announce (Sur)real, a juried group exhibition marking the first-ever New York Women’s Art Month, on view from March 6 through March 20, 2025, at The Blanc (15 E 40th Street, New York). Showcasing works by awardees Kate Donnelly, Emily Wisniewski, Sandra Cavanagh, Michelle Way, Wendi Men, and Katrina Slavik, alongside pieces by noted women artists Nancy Spero, Laurie Simmons, and Hu Junjun, (Sur)real highlights an array of perspectives on identity, feminism, and cultural heritage. With its focus on themes such as the uncanny, discomfort, and fantasy, the exhibition offers a fresh way to explore the evolving role of the feminine in contemporary art.

Curated as part of the inaugural New York Women’s Art Month (NYWAM)—an initiative by Waave Foundation spotlighting women’s often overlooked contributions to New York City’s cultural landscape—(Sur)real also features on an interactive map application powered by ARTLAS. As assistant curator Mingwei Zhong said, each artist in the exhibition pushes boundaries, blending materials narratives to spark new dialogues around modern and historical contexts.

“As we launch New York Women’s Art Month, we aim to correct art history’s oversights by celebrating artists currently shaping the city’s culture. Their work is critical now and will be essential to future generations”
—Hall W. Rockefeller

Exhibition Highlights

● Nancy Spero: A groundbreaking figure in the 1960s feminist art movement, her signature pictographic works—like Alphabet of Hieroglyphs (2008)—reclaim mythological imagery to highlight women’s narratives.
● Kate Donnelly (NYWAM awardee): Melding humor and performance, her time-based video projects examine common threads of human vulnerability and collective strength.
● Emily Wisniewski (NYWAM awardee): Her large-scale canvases merge human figures with natural terrain, offering tactile insights into queer identity and the fluid boundary between body and environment.
● Sandra Cavanagh (NYWAM awardee): Narrative-rich paintings and lithographs intersect personal and political histories, weaving mythology and mortality into transgenerational memory.
● Michelle Way (NYWAM awardee): Via crafted canvases, she underscores the lingering value of originality and handwork in a digitally saturated world.
● Wendi Men (NYWAM awardee): Drawing from Chinese ink painting and Abstract Expressionism, Men’s vivid oils speak to impermanence, resilience, and the cyclical nature of existence.
● Katrina Slavik (NYWAM awardee): Using recycled textiles, she explores sustainability, labor, and the shared histories rooted in New York City’s working-class communities.
● Hu Junjun: Her Unlimited Nirvana series fuses traditional and digital art forms to delve into Buddhist spirituality, devotion, and a rapidly shifting global environment.
● Laurie Simmons: Revisiting childhood dollhouses, her photography—such as New Bathroom Women Kneeling—unmasks how gender roles are subtly reinforced through representation.

Additionally, Waave Foundation will specially award Houlin Qian for her contributions in culture and music. Qian’s wide-ranging work—from organizing concerts and music education to leading cultural research—exemplifies how art can unite diversified communities worldwide.
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About Waave Foundation

Waave Foundation is a non-profit organization committed to empowering women voices through the arts. Emerging from the fourth-wave feminism movement, Waave encourages collaboration and curiosity across academic, technology, and arts. Founded by artists, art historians, curators, and people in culture who value rigorous scholarship and imaginative thinking, Waave uses art to propel social progress and champion underrepresented stories.

“It’s time to reclaim narratives forgotten by art history”
—Irene Ailin Wang, Founder of Waave Foundation
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Exhibition Details

● Dates: March 6 – March 20, 2025
● Venue: The Blanc, 15 E 40th Street, 2FL, New York
● Opening Reception: March 6, 2025 (6–9 PM)
● Gallery Hours: Wednesday to Saturday, 11 AM to 6 PM
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Media Contact

For press inquiries, interviews, or high-resolution images, please contact:
Email: info@waave.org
Instagram: @Waavefoundation
Website: www.waave.org