The group exhibition A Thousand-Pointed Star launches the innovative cultural initiative Teaspoon Projects – a dynamic curatorial space devoted to unearthing intricate layers of contemporary storytelling via multiple strands of contemporary art and literature. Brainchild of founder Gigi Surel, Teaspoon Projects intends to fully embrace the enigmatic and elliptical, creating spaces where emerging and diverse artistic voices converge, delving into the interplay between art and life, east and west, word and image – amplifying the subtle threads that shape our shared and individual experiences. Taking into its ambitious sway painting, drawing, video, sculpture and mixed media, it intends to cultivate a resonance of unanswered questions, inviting audiences to engage deeply with the evolving narratives of our time. As such, A Thousand-Pointed Star is the perfect debut, an exploration of the self as a richly woven tapestry, an amalgamation of every thread that has touched us – the lives we’ve intersected with, the impressions we’ve left, and those left upon us. The exhibition takes its title from Clarice Lispector's novella The Hour of the Star, which explores the fragmented self through radical uncertainty, and the tension between glimpsed identity and the barely known. The noton of the self, as told through the artists’ various narratives, is not a fixed, hidden pearl – shaped by countless hands, it is as much a reflection of others as a manifestation of our own instincts, desires, and dreams. In this interview Gigi Surel introduces three of the artists at the core of the inaugural show and takes us on a journey to a space where the questions are always more important than the answers:
"The exhibition brings together a constellation of artists, each with multidisciplinary practices and a playful, fictitious approach to their work. From their unique and whimsical perspectives, the artists explore how our ‘selves’ are intricately woven through a web of encounters: the fleeting smile of a stranger on the tube, the shadow of a bad dream, the sight of a fallen bird, or a heart-shaped cloud," says Surel. "These ephemeral moments intertwine with the enduring threads of our lives – our grandparents, our passports, our jobs – each fragment as potent as the next. Together, they contribute to the polyphony of our self-image and influence how others perceive themselves in our presence. This exhibition poses a question: is the self ever truly solitary, or is it a constellation – a thousand-pointed star shaped by every glance, every exchange, and every memory?"
Nina Gonzalez-Park
Nina Gonzalez-Park brings a background in neuroscience to her practice as a “swimmer between worlds,” working across painting, sculpture, and food-led interactions to connect us through shared human instincts. Her work challenges preconceptions of disciplines, cultures, and ideologies. In this exhibition, Nina presents sculptures, a painting, and a food-led
interaction that bridges the sensory and the cultural. Set in a cavernous space, her al fresco interaction invites visitors to pair sake with handmade tortillas, exploring the overlooked subtleties of flavour and how these elements have shaped cultures and thought. This immersive experience delves into the interplay of traditional ingredients, offering a journey
that connects two worlds through profound cultural narratives.
Mariette Moor
From there, we leap to the work of Mariette Moor, whose interdisciplinary practice blends drawing, clay, and writing as storytelling tools. Her work probes the uncanny edges of horror, examining its relationship to boundaries, absence, and control. Moor employs 'world fracturing'; as a methodology, merging the mundane, fantastical, and paranoid into psychological tableaux that question reality and sanity. Tenderness and violence coexist in her speculative bodies and spaces, grappling with the complexities of intimacy. This exhibition features two of her layered drawings and a small tongue sculpture. The drawings respond to a
poem about someone repeatedly removing, slicing, and reassembling their eyeballs, creating fractured yet cohesive narratives. The layered approach forces multiple actions to coexist, obscuring the act of careful mutilation and turning the body into a phantom of self-imposed violence, questioning the care within such acts. Mariette has also contributed to the exhibition's library, curated by me with input from the artists, by selecting Life in Folds by Henri Michaux. Visitors are invited to use the library during open hours, where cushions will be available for comfort.
Aliya Orr
Aliya Orr draws from her experiences growing up within the Islamic faith and outsider Sufi communities across multiple geographies, working with performance, sculpture, and drawing. Faith, with its reliance on uncertainty, becomes a driving principle in her work. She navigates the fluidity of cultural and religious imaginations while negotiating personal freedoms and the conflicts of living between different belief systems. Her work explores identity, belonging, and emotional passage beyond physical realms. In this exhibition, Aliya presents a series of magic squares created on repurposed book sleeves. These ancient mathematical puzzles, which also serve as talismanic symbols within Islamic traditions, become self-portraits that balance personal emotions and offer protection and healing. Inspired by her fascination with ancient manuscripts, a childhood spent reading the Quran, and visits to the historic libraries of Djenne and Timbuktu, Aliya uses soft pastels and gold and silver leaf to create works that are both precarious and potent. Through these magic
squares, she weaves together mysticism, information, and personal meaning, offering tools for restoring balance in life’s moments of uncertainty. Aliya is preparing a special performance for the exhibition's closing, scheduled for the evening of February 18th.
A Thousand-Pointed Star exhibits 11–18 February at 67 York Street Gallery. As part of every Teaspoon Projects exhibition, there will be a curated library installed for all to explore. Books included in the library for A thousand-pointed star include: Life in the Folds by Henri Michaux; I Have More Souls Than One by Fernando Pessoa; and Stories by Susan Sontag.
Exhibiting artists: AlOn, Jacob Clayton, Nina Gonzalez-Park, Maya Gurung-Russell Campbell, Ya Hsuan Hsiao, Jennifer Jones, Eva Merendes, Mariette Moor, Joe Moss, Aliya Orr, Ellie Wyatt, Shinhye You. A Thousand-Pointed Star will also feature an accompanying text written by Lu Rose Cunningham, writer, curator and co-lead at Wild Pansy Press Writers’ Room.
Images (top to bottom): Portrait of Gigi Surel by Betty Oxlade-Martin. El Calcehtok, Nina Gonzalez-Park, 2024, oil on Canvas. Courtesy of the artist and Teaspoon Projects; Garnish it, 2022, Mariette Moor, Graphite drawings on layered, transparent interleave paper with pewter fixings. Courtesy of the artist and Teaspoon Projects; Clean Slate, Aliya Orr, 2024, Soft Pastel, Repurposed Book Sleeve. Courtesy of the artist and Teaspoon Projects
