Vermont-based and nationally acclaimed artist Valerie Hird explores the connections between cultures and their environment as a meditation on the ambiguities of our contemporary world. In her first solo exhibition at the BCA Center, Hird presents a provocative visual exploration of humanity’s shared myths. The artist envisions a fantastical garden where untamed and uncivilized nature becomes a metaphor for the pressures weighing on societal systems.

Through a diverse vocabulary of colorful patterns and iconic symbols gathered and reimagined, Hird explores personal and collective identity – weaving together social, cultural, and political themes in a range of media. In this selection of new and recent work, Hird moves forward and backward across time and memory as she reflects on the illusion, disruption, and disarray within contemporary society. The Garden of Absolute Truths features large-scale paintings, animated video, and three-dimensional sculpture commissioned specifically for the exhibition.

All works Courtesy of the Artist and Nohra Haime Gallery, NY

Valerie Hird, Origination, 2019, oil on linen (detail)

Valerie Hird, Child of the Pure Unclouded Mind, 2019, watercolor and oil on Arches paper (detail)

Valerie Hird, The Garden of Absolute Truths, 2022, single channel video (still)

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Valerie Hird: The Garden of Absolute Truths is sponsored in part by The Maslow Family Foundation, Rolf Kielman & Stephanie Spencer, and Bonnie Reid Martin. Hospitality sponsors, Lake Champlain Chocolates, Farrell Distributing, and Prophecy Wines.

Burlington City Arts is supported in part by The Vermont Arts Council & the National Endowment for the Arts.