XOXO Exhibit
Dates: January 15 – February 27, 2026
Reception & Artist Talk: Thursday, January 15 at 4:00 PM
Location: Walford Galleries, Adams Hall
Description
“XOXO” can be pronounced as a string of singular letters. It is also known as an intimate shorthand for affection, sealing the ends of letters, emails, and texts with the tender promise of hugs and kisses. The letter X, has long been a sacred stand-in for “Christ” and for centuries been used as a valid signature on legal documents by those who were unable to spell their names. As a graphic symbol, it has been used repeatedly throughout the history of modern art. In the tradition of needlepoint, the X is a tiny, deliberate intersection of threads that forms the basic unit of counted cross-stitch. This mark, rich with history and meaning, has inspired my latest body of work.
About the Artist
Cayce Zavaglia earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting from Wheaton College in 1994 and her Master of Fine Arts in Painting from Washington University in 1998. In 2001, she began incorporating wool and cotton thread into her practice and embarked on a series of hand-embroidered portraits of family and friends. She is self-taught in the art of embroidery and her unique sewing technique has allowed her to blend colors and establish tonalities that resemble the techniques used in classical oil painting. Her stitching methodology borders on the obsessive and has allowed her to visually evoke painterly renditions of flesh, hair, and cloth.
In 2014, she started showing her embroideries in the round and began documenting the reverse side of her embroideries in a series of gouache, acrylic, and mixed media “verso” paintings. Historically, in embroidery, this side is always hidden from view. Zavaglia’s work challenges traditional embroidery etiquette and the place of “craft” in art by allowing the viewer to sometimes see the loose ends, knots, and the movements of the maker on the back of each portrait. In doing so, she has initiated a conversation about the divergence between our presented and private selves. The production of both recto and verso portraits is now the primary focus of her studio work.
In 2014, Zavaglia mounted her first solo museum exhibition entitled “Recto/Verso” at the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis. That same year, she was also awarded the prestigious Regional Arts Commission Artist Fellowship, which allowed her to embark on a research trip to Australia to document childhood friends for future works and exhibitions. Zavaglia has had solo exhibitions in Miami, Chicago, St. Louis, and New York City. Her works are included in the permanent collections of the 21c Museum, the University of Maine’s Zillman Museum of Art, the West Collection, the Pamela and David Hornik Collection, and numerous private collections across the United States. Zavaglia has been living and working in St. Louis since 1996 and is represented by William Shearburn Gallery in St. Louis, Missouri.