November 4-December 2, 2023, Kalawakan SpaceTime Gallery
Background:
Late in 2022, I saw a mystic. Aside from performing Reiki healing and giving me advice based on some readings, I was advised to change and have new routines “to create new paths”. I have received similar advice from a “person of science” 13 years before: “Change your routines to create new paths in your brain.” I Googled the terms path, routine, and brain, and was led to the term Neuroplasticity.
Neuroplasticity is “the brain’s ability to change and adapt due to experience…referring to the brain’s ability to change, reorganize, or grow neural networks”. Creating and sticking to routines help us strengthen neurons and develop new connections.
I decided to (re)incorporate meditation in my daily routine, as well as making mandalas daily. The exhibit works reflect certain realizations stemming from these routines.
ReWire Installation. Installation includes the daily mandalas I made from late September 2022 till end of September 2023, as well as wire “neurons”.
ReWire Installation detail.
Soften (Installation). Figures in various yoga/ stretching/ relaxation poses. Made with soft, thin-gauge wire.
The following wall-bound pieces all measure 3 by 2 feet. All these have a stainless steel frame, include wire, and are painted with spray paint. Most also include screens, and some contain beads and figures made with epoxy.
Paths 1 (Revised). Added more details to this piece which I first exhibited in 2022 for a group show.
Small Picture. This big 3×2 picture is made up smaller ones. Completed one small picture a day, for 72 days.
Conduit
Travel, Light
Touch 4. This was the fourth of a series of works that I started in 2023.
During exhibit preparations, my two pets died – a cat and dog. They both came into my life in 2013, and departed in 2023, less than 3 months apart. I felt compelled to make the two pieces to honor them. There are lessons in meditation that I also learned from them. From the dog, to live each moment fully and in the present (not the past or future). From the cat, to surrender control and expectations.
Freddie Big Heart
Feline Flow
More images of the exhibit (prep and proper) from my phone
You can also check out Kalawakan SpaceTime’s Instagram account for more, and WAY better pictures of the exhibit.
Here’s a Facebook Reel of the exhibit by Sam Penaso.
Ending this post with the exhibit notes written by Carlomar Arcangel Daoana.
Rewire
Steph Lopez
In her latest exhibition, Rewire, for KalawakanSpacetime, Steph Lopez investigates the malleability of her chosen material to reflect upon the cycles and rhythms of her routines. After all, what we do on a daily basis constitutes the fabric of life; we are inseparable from our own habits. While some of these regular actions are preferable, a few may need to be altered in order to enact new ways of thinking, feeling, and living—an idea pursued in this introspective journey of personal growth.
The artist embarked on this odyssey as a response to a personal crisis, seeking guidance from mystics and the realm of neuroplasticity. Neuroplasticity, a term that signifies the brain’s remarkable capacity to adapt and change through experiences, became the foundation of her pursuit. The path to rewiring one’s mind, Lopez realized, begins with the deliberate cultivation of new routines.
Central to this transformational experience is the artist’s incorporation of meditation into her daily life, sparking a deeper understanding on the relationship between self and reality. While meditation was a spiritual practice not new the artist, it was only recent that Lopez discovered a profound connection between mindfulness, meditation, and the concept of rewiring one’s brain.
In Rewire, the viewer encounters a collection of artworks that reflect the artist’s contemplations on this transformative practice. Meditation took on fresh meaning in the past year, during which she maintained her commitment to daily practice. The methods adopted vary, from guided meditations during hectic mornings to moments of quietude with meditation music, employing a blend of movement, breathing, visualization, prayer, and occasional mantras.
Although Lopez may not possess before-and-after brain scans as tangible proof of the rewiring process, she has experienced significant changes and benefits in her life. These transformations underscore the potency of meditation and daily routines, ultimately leading to profound shifts in perception and well-being. Among the notable changes she has observed are a heightened acceptance of life’s unpredictability, enhanced stress management, a deeper sense of self-care, heightened body awareness, and an amplified sense of gratitude.
One of the main aspects of Lopez’s daily practice is an expression of gratitude that blossoms organically during meditation. It is a personal prayer, a heartfelt acknowledgment of life’s blessings, and a reminder to appreciate every breath, every interaction, and every moment.
Rewire—through works that represent mandalas, neural pathways, movements, and a keen sense of the body in space—offers a contemplative space for viewers to explore their own journeys of self-discovery and growth. Through Lopez’s art and experiences, this exhibition reminds us of the power of mindfulness and the potential for transformation, as we venture to create new paths within our own minds and, consequently, into our own lives.
-Carlomar Arcangel Daoana
STEPH LOPEZ ART 
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