Lilies Into the Void

Blade Study presents Lilies Into The Void by Jo Shane (1955, MA), the artist's first solo exhibition at the gallery. Shane’s installation takes inspiration from the commercial movement of ‘living’ which relies on both superficial and existential insecurities surrounding mortality and the devolving body. Working in installation, Shane interrogates her own feelings around aging in an exhibition of sculptures and wall works.Working across sculpture, assemblage and photographic processes, Shane has historically constructed tableaus embracing and critiquing the medical and wellness industries. Matters of preservation —or lack thereof— are recurring themes in Shane’s work, especially as they pertain to aging, hormonal disruption, psychopharmaceutical intervention, mental health and reproductive choice. Additionally present are the spectres of privilege and accessibility lurking beneath the conversation.

L.O.N.G.E.V.I.T.Y.

Installed square at the gallery’s street facing window, Lilies Into the Void consists of a commercial-grade refrigerator and Seafoam Green latex, encasing a bouquet of cryogenically treated lilies, the frontispiece of the show’s inspiration. Their life span is prolonged. For now. The Temple of Longevity (2025), discursively links the raw (galvanized metal) and conceptual (photographic transfers) with methods of assemblage drawn from a background in sculpture. A series of industrial metal plates suggest the formation of a cross. Drawn from her collection of materials culled attending billionaire biohacking guru Brian Adams DON’T DIE! Summit, Shane turns corporate ideology into poetic symbols. At the summit, notions of life extension were advertised in partnership with various “scientific” brands that claim to prolong life. If Shane’s work speculates on the failings of this terrain, it's also a recognition of the seduction of possibility. Facing the temple, a trio of fire extinguisher cases are placed in white washed cabinets, lit by harsh blue LED tubes and stocked with the artist’s own used supplements and injectables aptly titled: Age Extinguisher #1, #2, #3. These encasements offer respite from the distraction of falling apart and feeling ill equipped to deal with the demands of life. Treatment Suite (2025), achieves true verisimilitude,presenting a fully-operational cryotherapy device and white pleather treatment chair. Asserting their presence in this provisional environment, these objects transcend “ordinary” status into luxury goods. Staying alive, it seems, is a lucrative business. At first glance, the gallery appears to be such.

As a performative aspect of the presentation, topical cryotherapy sessions by the artist will be available by appointment to willing participants who have signed a waiver. A special performance will take place during the opening reception on Thursday May 29th at 7pm.

— Marissa Delano

MARISSA DELANO is an artist and writer based in New York. She holds a B.A. in Literature from Hunter College. Themes of cuteness and sexual deviance often appear in her work. Recent exhibitions include THIRD BORN (2025) Mexico City, MX; NADA & The Salon (2024) Paris, FR; NADA House (2024) New York, NY; Barely Fair (2024) Chicago, IL; P.A.D. (2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2018,) New York, NY. Her writing has appeared in Topical Cream, Serving the People (STP) and rivulet.

JO SHANE (b. 1955 Boston, MA) lives and works in New York. In 1975 she completed The Whitney Independent Studies program. Shane also studied at Carnegie Mellon University and holds a BFA from Pratt Institute. Formerly she was on faculty at The School of Visual Arts (1989-2013.)

Select exhibitions include: White Columns (1980, 1982, 2025 ) New York, NY; TW Fine Art (2022, 2023) Palm Beach, FL; Johannes Vogt (2019) New York, NY; Gallery Kendra Jane Patrick (2019, 2020) New York, NY; Franklin Parrasch Gallery (2014) New York, NY; Barbara Gladstone Gallery (1981) New York, NY; Artist’s Space (1989) New York, NY; Hall Bromm (1987) New York, NY; MoMA PS1 (1980) Queens, NY; Grey Gallery (1991) New York, NY; Musee D’Art Contemporain (1991) Montreal, QC and The Istanbul Museum of Contemporary Art (2009), Istanbul, TR; among many others.