Erosions Exhibition
for Merida Studio | 2024 | Curation, Art Direction, Project Management
Curating the opening exhibition for Merida Studio’s newly renovated space to frame transformation — of material, space, and perception.
To debut the newly renovated Boston Gallery, I was tasked with curating the opening exhibition — an effort that functioned as a direct continuation of the gallery redesign I had overseen. In many ways, the exhibition served as the conceptual bridge between the physical transformation of the space and how the work within it would now be experienced.
As the head of marketing and brand, I had previously assisted in curating exhibitions for the New York Gallery, but this project allowed me to take full ownership of the curatorial vision and execution. Because I was located within driving distance of Boston, I was able to oversee the installation in person, direct the photoshoot, and attend the opening as head curator, working closely with the sales team, studio owner and director, and the artist-in-residence whose work was featured.
The target audience for the exhibition was the interior design and architecture community frequenting the Boston Design Center and working with our New England sales representative. The exhibition needed to immediately signal a shift in how the studio’s textiles should be perceived — elevating them from product to artwork—while remaining approachable enough to invite passersby to step inside, ask questions, and engage.
At its core, Erosions was designed to support the broader goals of the Boston Gallery relaunch: increasing foot traffic, improving the quality of client conversations, and strengthening the conversion of visits into quotes and sales. The exhibition was not meant to feel decorative or promotional, but purposeful — something that rewarded closer looking and sustained attention.
By prioritizing warmth and approachability, the strategy was to create an environment where visitors felt comfortable slowing down and engaging deeply with the work.
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Strategy
To ground the exhibition within Merida Studio’s existing exhibition language, I reviewed past shows from the New York Gallery as well as exhibitions we had collaborated on with other galleries over the previous few years. This helped establish continuity in scale, pacing, and presentation while leaving room for the Boston Gallery to develop its own voice.
Through this review, I identified a recurring gap: previous exhibitions lacked professional documentation and tangible takeaways for visitors. As a result, much of the impact of those shows ended when the exhibition came down. For Erosions, I made documentation and promotion part of the curatorial strategy, ensuring professional photography was ready for use before and after the opening, documenting the exhibition on the studio's website, creating a write-up for the show, and designing postcards with essential exhibition information for visitors to take with them. These materials extended the life of the exhibition beyond the gallery walls and helped reinforce the studio’s evolving identity through multiple touchpoints.
At its core, Erosions was designed to support the broader goals of the Boston Gallery relaunch: increasing foot traffic, improving the quality of client conversations, and strengthening the conversion of visits into quotes and sales. The exhibition was not meant to feel decorative or promotional, but purposeful — something that rewarded closer looking and sustained attention.
In response, I curated the show around brown and warm neutral textiles. This decision was informed by current trends in interior design and fashion, but it was also deeply intentional in tone. Brown is a humble, grounding color — warm rather than imposing — and helped make the gallery feel welcoming rather than austere. Surrounded by cocoa-toned works, visitors could settle into the space and engage without feeling overwhelmed.
A restrained, monochromatic approach created focus, depth, and cohesion within the small gallery space, while the theme reinforced the transformation of the gallery and brand.
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Process
I began the curatorial process by reviewing all available Artist’s Proofs and grouping them by color. Early on, I committed to a monochromatic exhibition. The artist places significant emphasis on monochrome within the Atelier period, where materiality takes precedence over narrative or color. Restricting the palette allowed viewers to focus on subtle variations in texture, weave, and technique.
This restraint was especially important given the scale of the gallery. The space could accommodate only three large Artist’s Proofs and a small number of framed works. Introducing multiple colors risked fragmenting attention and making the exhibition feel scattered. By “stripping away” color as a focal point, the exhibition asked viewers to look more closely — to go beyond surface-level impression and engage with the physical intelligence of the work.
While reviewing pieces across six series and multiple years, I noticed recurring motifs that seemed to evolve over time. Drawing on my interest in animation, I began to see each textile as a kind of keyframe — capturing a moment within a longer arc of transformation. This observation led to the exhibition’s central theme: Erosions. Inspired by cycles of nature and the idea that destruction can be generative, the theme echoed the recent transformation of the Boston Gallery itself — letting go of what no longer served the space in order to create something new.
To further reinforce the studio’s ongoing effort to position its textiles alongside other contemporary artworks, I consigned two small sculptural pedestal works from Studio Eidola. Made from a renewable concrete material designed to erode over time, these objects aligned conceptually with the exhibition while introducing a complementary medium into the space.
Throughout the process, I created scaled mockups using Photoshop and Procreate, testing layouts, orientations, and sightlines within photographs of the gallery to ensure balance and clarity before installation. Creating scaled mockups proved invaluable — not only for curatorial decision-making, but for seamless handoff to installation teams. By resolving measurements and placements early, installation was efficient and free of major surprises.
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Photography
I was particularly interested in creating an atmosphere that felt restrained and contemplative — allowing portions of the work and space to fall into shadow rather than revealing everything at once.
Visually, the goal was to evoke a sense of a new dawn: forms emerging slowly from darkness, suggesting renewal and transformation rather than a static presentation. This approach echoed both the recent transformation of the Boston Gallery and the conceptual framework of the exhibition itself, which draws on cycles of erosion, sediment, and regeneration found in natural systems. By allowing shadows to obscure and reveal selectively, the imagery invited viewers to look more closely and mirrored the experience of encountering the exhibition in person.
The resulting photographs became key assets for promoting the exhibition ahead of the opening and documenting it afterward, ensuring that the tone, values, and narrative of the show were consistently communicated across physical and digital touchpoints.
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Collaboration
I also collaborated closely with the New York Gallery Manager and the Workshop Office Manager to coordinate consignment agreements, shipping, handling, and installation logistics in line with established gallery practices.
In addition to coordinating with internal teams and external partners, I art directed the photoshoot for the exhibition’s promotional imagery. I worked closely with photographer Patrick Kolts, whose technical expertise in camera operation, lighting setup, and execution allowed us to push the visual language of the exhibition while maintaining a high level of craft.
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Challenges
With no dedicated exhibition budget, collaboration became essential. I sought out artists and studios whose values aligned with Merida Studio’s material-driven, exploratory approach. Studio Eidola agreed to consign their works for the exhibition, allowing their pieces to be offered for sale while receiving mutual promotion through the gallery, website, and social channels.
During transportation, one of the sculptural works was damaged. Working directly with Studio Eidola, I was guided through repairing the piece in time for photography and installation, allowing the exhibition to proceed without altering the curatorial plan.
Following the debut of Erosions, the Boston Gallery experienced an increase in foot traffic and inbound interest. While the success of the exhibition is closely tied to the broader gallery renovation, the show played a critical role in signaling the shift in how the work should be encountered and discussed.
For me, this project reinforced the importance of thoughtful documentation in maximizing the impact of an exhibition. It was also deeply fulfilling to apply my visual design and branding skills to a physical environment. Much of my work as a brand manager lives in digital systems; this project expanded my understanding of brand identity as something spatial, tactile, and experiential.
More broadly, Erosions affirmed my interest in working at the intersection of brand, space, and art — finding new ways to communicate values through material, environment, and presence.
The Boston Gallery's inaugural exhibition successfully launched the new space, reaffirmed the power of spatial brand expression, and invited visitors into a new understanding of Merida Studio's work.