The Facts
Isabelle Frances McGuire, a Chicago-based sculptor known for her Whitney Biennial installation of witches and floating villagers, has opened the interactive solo show 'Joy is a Puppet' at Bel Ami in Los Angeles. The exhibition centers on a video game, 'Joy's Hands' (2026), co-created with Will Lee, that allows players to cast spells and summon demons on a large flatscreen. The game is set in an exaggerated colonial Massachusetts and follows a woman named Joy confined by her father amid religious fanaticism. Sculptures in the gallery include a bronze nude figure, wicker baskets, bronze frogs, and colorful piles of fabricated excrement, all surrounding the video-game narrative.
The Signal
The show extends McGuire's recurring interest in reclaiming historically persecuted female figures, moving beyond simple binaries of good and evil. By translating the Salem witch trials into an immersive gaming environment, the artist taps into a lineage of American moral panics, from the satanic scares of the 1980s to contemporary cultur. For collectors and curators, the exhibition signals a growing convergence of video art and interactive gaming within gallery settings, building on McGuire’s rising profile after her standout presence at the 2026 Whitney Biennial. The work's visceral, playful approach to demonology offers a fresh lens on how mythologized figures continue to shape American identity.
- Artists: Isabelle Frances McGuire
- People: Will Lee
- Galleries: Bel Ami
- Locations: Los Angeles
The Morning Signal · Daily
Get stories like this in your inbox
The art world in one daily email — auctions, openings, and acquisitions from 90+ primary sources, distilled into a five-minute read. Independent — no marketplace, no gallery ads.
Join collectors, dealers & curators
No spam · free every morning · unsubscribe anytime
The Jobs Digest · Weekly
New art-world jobs, every Monday
The Jobs Digest rounds up the week’s new museum, gallery, and auction-house openings — with salary when disclosed. One email a week, unsubscribe anytime.
