Love In All The Right Places / Build: Leigh Salgado & Ching Ching Chen

Launch LA is proud to present two solo shows by artists Ching Ching Cheng and Leigh Salgado, both of whom investigate the nuances of femininity, gender stereotypes and reflections on lived experience. 

Los Angeles based artist Leigh Salgado combines figurate and abstract imagery of abstracted flowers, petals and textiles with the manual dexterity of her highly meticulous process.

The labor-intensive process involves cutting paper by hand with an exacto knife, lending texture and dimensionality to the surface. Altering monotypes with cutting, painting and the addition of eyelets also creates some of the new work. Each of the works draws a resemblance to a range of readymade objects: lace, netting, fabrics, metal and articles of clothing. 

Love In All The Right Places investigates an ongoing interest in subjects and forms that Salgado associates with her development during girlhood and womanhood. Memories, experiences and various women who have formed her worldview serve as inspiration. As such, a common theme in Salgado’s imagery is a reinterpretation of the feminine and/or “girlishness.” Motivated by a belief in the inherent power of the female, Salgado challenges antiquated notions of weakness, diminishment or triviality previously associated with “girly” things. Salgado’s process of hand cutting may be reminiscent of “women’s work” such as sewing, knitting, or crocheting, but the end result is most definitely fine art, historically privileged as “men’s work.”

Salgado’s art is also about persistence in spite of the impossibility of perfection, an appreciation for ornamentation and a deep respect for the actual labor that manifests ideas into concrete objects.

Ching Ching Cheng explores the shifting dynamic of cross-cultural influence in her exhibition of apron sculptures, titled Build. As a Taiwanese and American artist, Cheng recognizes that our behaviors, values and mannerisms will naturally change and adapt to different environments. In this latest body of work, she examines the shifting definition of femininity and challenges the preconceived notions of wife and mother. The epoxy and resin aprons become built environments, each housing perceptions of culture, identity and experience. Each of these sculptures is an intimate view of the artist and a universal embodiment of womanhood, family and shelter.

Leigh Salgado lives and works in Los Angeles and exhibits internationally. She received a B.A. from UCLA and an M.A. from Loyola Marymount University.

Ching Ching Cheng moved from Taiwan to Los Angeles in 2003 where she earned a BFA from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena.