Masked Muse
Exhibiting at ACES Gallery
September 25 - October 20, 2026
Opening Reception
September 25, 2026
6 pm - 9 pm
This body of work explores the paradox of wanting to be seen while simultaneously needing protection.
Within each composition exists a dialogue between exposure and concealment. The body may be present and visible, yet the face, the place we most readily associate with identity and recognition, is concealed.
The viewer is invited to question what lies beneath and, perhaps more importantly, why it needed to be covered in the first place.
When we place a mask upon ourselves, are we hiding, or are we finally allowing ourselves to be seen?
Is the mask, one we chose, shaped by our own experiences and desires?
Or is it one that was given to us, formed by expectations, relationships, culture, or the roles we were taught to inhabit?
What stories, emotions, dreams, or hidden worlds could emerge if you were given a blank canvas shaped like a mask?
Would it reveal a version of yourself that has never had a chance to speak.
Purchase a blank mask from ACES Gallery and transform it into something entirely your own.
There are no rules for what it should become. Paint it with bold colors, sketch intricate designs, layer it with collage, cover it in unexpected textures, embellish it with found objects, or create something so unusual that it becomes impossible to look away.
Masks must be completed and dropped off at
Fully Awake Art Gallery
by October 18, 2026, where it will become part of the 4th Friday, October 23rd, 2026 community exhibit.