Elizabeth Hudson: Maze Tales

October 01, 2026 - January 03, 2027 From the organizers: “I know of a Greek labyrinth which is a single straight line. Along this line so many philosophers have lost themselves that a mere detective might well do so too.” -from Death and the Compass by Jorge Luis Borges Mazes are depicted as difficult paths in popular imagination, but Maze Tales posits an alternative point of view: what if a maze represents a journey one decides to willingly embark upon? On another level, what if the maze is your right to opacity, as the writer Édouard Glissant talks about in Philosophie de la Relation (Philosophy of Relation)? What kind of wonder and surprise can you stumble upon when you find yourself lost with no directions other than your internal guide? Elizabeth Hudson explores this alternative world of mazes and labyrinths through the lens of Black folklore, incorporating the natural world with both the imagined and the constructed worlds of staircases, pathways, and playgrounds. Using watercolor as her primary medium, she invites viewers to step into a world of dreams, of poetry, and paradoxically, of opacity. About the Artist: Elizabeth Maria Hudson (b. Los Angeles, 1989) is a watercolor figurative painter from Dallas, Texas. She studied painting and drawing at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and has a BA in history and art history from the University of Texas at Austin. She has exhibited at Pencil on Paper Gallery, George Washington Carver Museum, Big Medium, and Martha’s. Her work is in the current issue of New American Paintings: Issue 180 West. Presently, work centers on translating the nuances of black American folklore into a visual language that focuses on womanist themes like agency, liberation, and community care. She currently lives and works between Dallas, Texas and Austin, Texas." Reception October 11\, 2026 | 1:00 \- 4:00 pm Austin Central Library 710 W Cesar Chavez St. Austin, Texas 78701