Chelsea: Viridian Artists Inc. is pleased to present the exhibition "social studies"(the integrated study of multiple fields of social science and the humanities, including history, culture, geography and political science), a mixed media exhibition by May DeViney. The show opens May 23 and continues through June 17, 2023 with an opening reception on May 25, 6-8pm. The artist will present an informative talk about her work on Saturday, June 10 at 4pm.

May DeViney continues to explore and expand visually her ideas about the environment, women’s lives, gun violence and an area that she calls “personal power” struggles. In the past as now, politics has been a critical aspect of her motivation for artmaking. Creating with no holds barred, no subject is taboo to her.

Our environment feels doomed as those in power prevaricate and procrastinate, leaving future generations the insurmountable task of dealing with what we have been unable to solve. In this exhibit, her pieces such as “Uncertainty” and “The Gleaners” are an attempt to cry out that so much more needs to be achieved for climate normalization. Advances have been made, but we have so far to go…

Her Madonna Series continues, humorously exploring the idea of the “working saint” as if she were an ordinary woman, beset with the drudgeries of daily life and the subservience ever-present in attitudes towards “women’s work.”Though there have been many advances in attitudes towards women, DeViney is distressed by “how many parts of women’s lives remain in contest; a push-and-pull against antiquated limitations on women’s freedoms and rights to determine the paths of their own lives. The blame heaped on women for societies’ ills reflects thousands of years of indoctrination. A new ‘replacement theory’ about women has emerged that, like the racial ‘replacement theory,’ posits that anything gained by women emasculates men and deprives them of their god-instilled authority.

Focusing on the theme of Gun Violence, the artist has created works to address this frightening aspect of American life. Incorporating spent bullet casings and a children’s game board “Go to the Head of the Class – If They Let You” is a painful reminder that violence has become an everyday matter for children as does “Joey’s Last School Day.

DeViney is always creatively inspired by politically tinged issues and opens up whole new worlds of thought for viewers to consider as they meander through her provocative artworks. The artist sees our personal politics as deeply ingrained in our thinking and with her works “Power Plays” and “Last Judgment/Disco Inferno” she hints at the day-to-day attempts we make to impress “important people,” climbing up the ladder of achievement while kicking those below.

I am basically a cartoonist. My focus is to get my point across directly; the themes of my works are clearly expressed in simple forms – deep investigation is not warranted – and any grace or eloquence is realized later. I adorn the simple themes with notes from antiquity, and from societal detritus that lend the work a hint of the past that spawned the underlying ideas.

(May DeViney about her artistic powers)

Still, the seriousness behind all that DeViney creates must be heard and seen so that we can safely consider better paths to follow as we deal with the issues of the day.

May DeViney, a native Mid-westerner, attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago where she absorbed the influences of the Chicago Imagists and iconoclastic art movements such as the Hairy Who, where Hairy Who icon Jim Nutt, was her instructor. She now resides in New England, studying art most recently at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Along the way she also earned a degree in Computer Science from Boston University, reflecting her detail-oriented, analytical eye. The experiences she has gained and her trenchant observations on the human condition are constantly reflected in her work.

DeViney's art has been exhibited in New York and at university galleries and museums throughout the United States and is in many collections. It has also appeared in national publications including Harper’s Magazine, the New York Times, Wall Street International and the cover of Prism magazine.