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McLean Project for the Arts will open three spring solo exhibitions on April 30, bringing together works that explore diaspora, generational memory and encounters between people and water birds.

The exhibitions feature Sabine Carlson’s “Dream a Better World,” Zsudayka Nzinga’s “Ancestral Iconography” and Darlene R. Taylor’s “Heirlooms: Garden Beauty.” They will remain on view through June 13, 2026, at MPA at McLean Community Center.

An opening reception is scheduled for Saturday, May 2, from 2 to 4 p.m.

History, memory and imagined rescues

Nzinga’s “Ancestral Iconography,” in the Emerson Gallery, examines American labor systems and their historical and continuing effects on diaspora communities and cultures in the United States. Drawing from traditional American folklore and myth, she creates imagined interior, exterior and figurative scenes using hand-printed and painted materials.

Also in the Emerson Gallery, Taylor’s “Heirlooms: Garden Beauty” combines inherited fabrics and paper in portraits reflecting on the labor, sacrifice and love of Black mothers. Her materials include vintage linens, lace, cotton and buttons passed from one generation to the next.

Carlson’s “Dream a Better World,” displayed in the Atrium Gallery, presents paintings of humans and water birds involved in various rescue efforts. The works depict chance meetings along rivers, lakes and the sea.

Talks planned in May

A Tea & Talk with Artistic Director Nancy Sausser will take place Wednesday, May 13, at 11 a.m. An artist talk is scheduled for Saturday, May 30, at 11 a.m. Both events will be held at MPA at McLean Community Center.

The Atrium Gallery may be visited during McLean Community Center operating hours. The Emerson Gallery is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

The O’Shaughnessy Hurst Memorial Foundation is sponsoring the spring exhibitions.