Nadia Westcott

We are proud to present Brooklyn-based artist, Nadia Westcott in the Frame 301, a street side window gallery of Montserrat College of Art, located at 301 Cabot Street in Beverly. Westcott’s practice is dedicated to empowering viewer communities through graphic drawings, murals, and site-specific installations. The artist’s mural marks her return to Beverly, two years after collaborating with Montserrat Galleries in the exhibition SEVEN: A Performative Drawing Project, a show that invited seven artists to“draw” directly onto one of the seven gallery walls during a series of week-long residencies. In 2013, Westcott created a “spontaneous” mural everyday, for five days. Each graphic, black and white mural was an exercise in impermanence, practice, and play. In light of the SEVEN Reunion exhibition on view in the Carol Schlosberg Alumni Gallery currently on view, Westcott was invited to return to Beverly to create a new mural, this time in the Frame 301 Gallery.

“The Body” is a reflection of how Westcott integrates her exploration in personal healing and the connection to emotional pain that manifests as physical pain in the body. “The Body” is a therapeutic approach to separate the emotional body from the egotistic mind; it is a transfer of energy from physical body to the art expression on the wall. In allowing herself to be fully present with the work, the action of Westcott’s installation is the metaphoric and physical release of trapped energy. Her deep respect for nature and love for textiles subconsciously inspires Westcott to create her own iconography that is playful in shape and form. “The Body” is rooted in understanding the human experience by acknowledging our traumas, taking action to eliminate suffering by remaining in meditative states, and embracing self-love and care.

The Frame 301 space is presented to the public through expansive storefront windows that face the road, and encourages large-scale, site-specific works from emerging and established artists. The unique venue encourages installations that encompass the entirety of the space and completely transform it. The public is able to view and appreciate the artwork on a 24/7 basis, leading many to unexpectedly experience the artwork.

Nadia Westcott grew up in Boston, MA and received her BA from the University of Vermont. Born of Indonesian and American heritage, she was raised in a culturally rich and diverse environment, where her family traveled the world learning and collecting cultural artifacts that inspired her curiosities and subconsciously enabled her to create her own iconography inspired by the world and cultures around her. Westcott currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.

The Frame 301 is generously supported by a grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council.