Sally Kauffman: Pleasure Park

Pleasure Park is a solo exhibition by Washington, DC-based visual artist Sally Kauffman. The exhibition features large-scale paintings that occupy a space between abstraction and recognizable imagery, portraying people and animals taking part in communal activities such as picnicking, hula hooping, Jiu Jitsu, juggling, gymnastics, skating, dancing, and listening to music.

Inspired by scenes observed in Malcolm X Park, the works reflect the pleasure of gathering and the human need for connection and renewal after pandemic isolation. Kauffman photographs her subjects in the park, then builds experimental digital collages in her studio before translating them into paintings with transparent oil washes, layered color, and expressive brushwork. Drawing on Italian Baroque frescoes and Neo-Rococo art, she creates vivid, dreamlike spaces that balance delight and visual tension.

Artist: Sally Kauffman

When: 2025. The exhibition is listed on the page as a solo exhibition at the Athenaeum.

Venue: Athenaeum, Alexandria, Virginia

Tickets: Price not available

Works: Large-scale paintings depicting people and animals in social and recreational settings, including picnicking, hula hooping, Jiu Jitsu, juggling, gymnastics, skating, playing, dancing, and listening to music.

Process: Kauffman photographs people in Malcolm X Park, arranges the images into digitally manipulated collages, and uses them as the basis for paintings developed with transparent oil washes and energetic brushwork.

Themes: Community, pleasure, connection, restoration, and the renewed value of gathering after pandemic isolation.

Background: Kauffman’s work draws from Italian Baroque frescoes and the luminous colors and expressive forms of the Neo-Rococo movement, inviting viewers into an atmosphere of escape and delight.