Floating Gallery's 'Catastrophe' Show Explores Painting's Ruptures
On August 8, 2026, Sharon Butler met with Marion Wilson at The Floating Gallery, located in Vineyard Haven, Martha's Vineyard, to talk about the ongoing exhibition titled "Catastrophe," which will be displayed until August 31. Wilson established this gallery on a mini-barge at 100 Lagoon Pond, a purchase made five years ago during the COVID pandemic. With twelve years of expertise in upcycling mobile architectures, she highlighted her return to painting after a 15-year break and her use of black paper in 2024. The exhibition, inspired by Gilles Deleuze's lectures from 1981, showcases works by artists including Louis Block, Barbara Friedman, Lyle Ashton Harris, Ella Mahoney, and Marion Wilson, who also discussed Block's method of adjusting canvas sizes.
Key facts
- The Floating Gallery is located at 100 Lagoon Pond, Vineyard Haven, MA.
- The exhibition 'Catastrophe' is on view through August 31, 2026.
- The show features Louis Block, Barbara Friedman, Lyle Ashton Harris, Ella Mahoney, and Marion Wilson.
- The title derives from Gilles Deleuze's 1981 lectures published as 'On Painting'.
- Marion Wilson bought the barge from a retired master wooden boatbuilder five years ago.
- Wilson's earlier projects include MLAB (2008) and 'This Store Too' for the New Museum.
- Wilson did not paint for 15 years, rediscovering her oil paint box in 2009 after a gallery fire.
- Louis Block unstretched and re-stretched a canvas to adjust its proportions, cracking the paint layer.
Entities
Artists
- Sharon Butler
- Marion Wilson
- Louis Block
- Barbara Friedman
- Lyle Ashton Harris
- Ella Mahoney
- Gilles Deleuze
- Francis Bacon
- Paul Klee
- Vincent van Gogh
- Paul Cézanne
Institutions
- The Floating Gallery
- New Museum
- Bowery Mission
- Syracuse University
- Sarah Lawrence College
- Five Myles
- The Brooklyn Rail
- Two Coats of Paint
- MICA (Maryland Institute College of Art)
- Wesleyan University
Locations
- Vineyard Haven
- Martha's Vineyard
- Massachusetts
- United States
- 100 Lagoon Pond
- Manhattan
- New York City
- New York
- Bowery
- West Village
- FiDi (Financial District)
- Italy