February 7 – March 29, 2026 – Katzen Arts Center at American University Museum, 4400 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, D.C. 20016
Opening Reception: February 7, 2026, 6–9 PM
Ilana Manolson, Vernal Pond, 2015. Acrylic on yupo, 28.75 x 24.5 inches.
Painter, printmaker, and naturalist Ilana Manolson presents a solo exhibition that turns our attention to the plants we overlook—the so-called weeds that thrive at the edges of human awareness. The Air We Share elevates these resilient species, revealing how they stabilize soil, retain water, and sustain the interconnected systems we all depend on.
Working from deep botanical observation honed through years as a Parks Canada naturalist, Manolson layers luminous color and delicate detail to trace what she calls “energetic fields”—the invisible forces connecting all living things. In works like Vernal Pond, swirling blues give way to the intricate plant life that depends on and shapes seasonal waters. Her paintings flow between abstraction and representation, making visible the quiet work these plants perform: holding water in place, offering shelter and medicine, renewing degraded land.
This exhibition extends Manolson’s ongoing exploration of water and ecological change. In her recent The River Between at Brattleboro Museum, she examined how water shapes and is shaped by its environment. Here, she shifts focus to the plant life that mediates water’s movement through landscapes, reminding us that every living thing plays a role in the cycles that sustain us.
The Air We Share challenges the hierarchies we impose on nature. At a moment of climate urgency, Manolson’s work invites renewed attention to the interdependence between water, plant life, and the shared breath that connects us all.
Image: Ilana Manolson, Vernal Pond, 2015. Acrylic on yupo, 28.75 x 24.5 inches.