Veronica presents Cradle, a solo exhibition of new work by Taryn Tomasello. One of the objects on view is a script by Tomasello titled THE ACT OF GENTLY HOLDING SOMETHING THAT HAS THE POTENTIAL FOR GREAT VIOLENCE. Two readings of excerpts from the script will be performed by Aurora San Miguel on May 9 at 5pm and on June 6 at 5pm. Objects on view are available to be read and handled.

___ started by asking questions. ___ tried to remember that ___ do want to know your answers even if ___ are afraid of what you might have to say. Imagine the truth about this is a wild animal and we have to approach it without frightening it away.

“First of all we strike trouble in determining what truth is worth telling. For example, before the eyes of the whole world one great civilized nation after the other falls into barbarism. Moreover, everyone knows that the domestic war which is being waged by the most ghastly methods can at any moment be converted into foreign war which may well leave our continent in a heap of ruins. This, undoubtedly, is one truth, but there are others. Thus, for example, it is true that chairs have seats and that rain falls downward. Many poets write truths of this sort. They are like the painter adorning the walls of a sinking ship with a still life.”

              – “Writing the Truth Five Difficulties”, Bertolt Brecht, 1935

Taryn Tomasello (b. 1982 Boston, MA) is an artist living and working in Portland, OR, whose work engages text, event, image, material and objects. She is concerned with witnessing and latency. Through collecting and handling forms and ideas, Tomasello’s work functions as a critique of our history and our present, attempting to make sense of irreconcilable futures. Although research is an integral part of Tomasello’s practice, she maintains a deep affinity with the uninvited and unexpected, often working spontaneously in response to a site or situation. Tomasello has shown her work in art spaces across the US and internationally as well as being included in publications both online and in print. However, her most meaningful work often exists outside the confines of traditional gallery settings and beyond the reach of conventional documentation strategies. Tomasello holds an MFA from the Milton Avery Graduate School of Arts at Bard College and a BFA from Pacific Northwest College of Art.