Rusted, Burned and Broken
Polina Smutko finds new strength within age-old hurts
Anyone who experiences assemblage installation artist Polina Smutko’s forthcoming Still Born Stillfree exhibit might feel like they’re stepping through a portal into the darker corners of a person’s mind. In fact, the installation literally features a door that holds that intention.
“The ‘Salt in the Wound’ piece was done in response to Utah becoming the fourteenth state to pass into law an anti-trans bathroom law,” Smutko tells SFR. “I was so pissed off, so I got this door, and I took a blow torch to it. The door is the door they closed on me—on us.”
Smutko’s found object work expresses what trauma looks and feels like as a nonbinary trans woman living in American society. They’ve always gravitated to art as a means of expression, though that doesn’t mean the road to discovering said expression was an easy one.
Smutko attended Pennsylvania University in the 1970s, though their father wouldn’t pay for art school, so they pursued landscape architecture. Smutko was drafted into the Vietnam War, however, before completing school—though they were ultimately dismissed for being queer. Later, they attended the San Francisco Art Institute and even worked as an assistant galley cook on a ship used in the production of the original 1980 Shogūn miniseries. During that period, Smutko faced no small amount of queerphobia, though they ultimately learned to harness that emotional tumult for their creative pursuits.
“My pieces draw from trauma experienced from being dehumanized and marginalized,” they explain. “I was emotionally
bullied over a long period of time, and I wound up having a breakdown.”
Smutko returned to the States while still in a dark place, yet through their art they’ve managed to resurface over the decades with a drive to excise their trauma. Through objects such as burned doors, chairs and branches, rusted nails, broken glass and written word, Smutko’s vision comes to life.
“It doesn’t matter whether people get my exact meaning, as long as the piece makes them feel, and the materials speak to them,” they say. “I don’t want to be literal. I hate that. I work with metaphors and with objects I believe really say something.” (Adam Ferguson)
Polina Smutko:
Still Born Stillfree (Opening):
4 pm Thursday. Feb. 27. Free
Dean’s Gallery @Santa Fe Community College 6401 Richards Ave., (505) 428-1000
Pizzanissimo!
Public Domain
Nothing goes better with pizza than a cold pint and some piano music. Get out of town for a sunset cruise down the scenic Turquoise Trail and enjoy all three tasty items in the charming rural tavern at Beer Creek, where pianist Elizabeth Anglin holds court on the house piano between the crackling fireplace, foaming steins and great pizza. Sing-alongs might just erupt without warning as Anglin plays covers in the Americana, blues, folk and country milieu, plus rock classics. Anglin does original songs, too. Reservations are not required because Anglin is also a psychic and likely already knows you’re coming. (Jesse A. Colvin)
Piano Night with Elizabeth Anglin: 5-7:30pm Thursday, Feb.27, Free. Beer Creek Brewing Co., 3810 Hwy 14, (505) 471-9271
Park Guess
Provided
What makes the trivia night at bookshop/travel shop Travel Bug stand out from the likes of Geeks Who Drink? The thematic twist they’ve added to make it their own, of course. TB’s trivia is travel-related, and this month’s event with host Wes Vance is all about National Parks. Fingers crossed for Half Dome and Old Faithful Qs, right? But don’t forget about White Sands and Carlsbad Caverns. Point is, there’s a wild and wooly world of parks out there, so if winning is your thing, the time to brush up is now. Participants get a drink ticket, too, and can choose from an ample draft beer selection. For the non-beer drinkers, the employees pull a pretty mean espresso. (AF)
History and Travel Trivia Night with Wes Vance:
5 pm Friday, Feb. 28. Free. Travel Bug, 839 Paseo De Peralta, (505) 992-0418
Dropping a Line
Courtesy International Folk Art Museum
The history of prison-made art in America is a long and robust one that includes the likes of tattoos, food, writing, painting and paños—pen and/or pencil illustrations on fabric or handkerchiefs. That last one became a means for incarcerated Chicano folks to communicate while locked up. Now, as part of its Between the Lines: Prison Art & Advocacy exhibit, the Museum of International Folk Art presents a screening of the 1996 documentary Paño Arte: Images From Inside, as well as a discussion and Q&A with director Evangeline Griego; the film’s photographer Miguel Gandert; National Hispanic Cultural Center head curator Jaidre Gurulé; folklorist and educator Enrique Lamadrid; and artist/curator Eric “Christo” Martinez. (Alex De Vore)
Paño Arte: From the Inside
Screening & Discussion:
1-4 pm Sunday, March 2. Free. Museum of International Folk Art, 706 Camino Lejo, (505) 476-1204
