Sable Elyse Smith at VOLTA NY 2017
Donation protected
The Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA) is pleased to represent a selection of works by Sable Elyse Smith for the tenth anniversary of VOLTA NY 2017. Opening on March 1 on Pier 90 in New York City, Smith’s work will be included in Your Body Is A Battleground, curated by Wendy Vogel.
MoCADA is asking for your help in bringing the work of Sable Elyse Smith to an international audience at VOLTA NY 2017.
“Your Body Is A Battleground” references the 1989 work of the same name by Barbara Kruger, as each exhibiting artist in this years Curated Section addresses the relationship between personal experience and political structure. Smith’s work considers the effect of incarceration on the body specifically referencing the past 20 years in which she has visited her father in various California-state prisons. Rooted at the core of her practice is a desire to visualize how trauma is etched into our memory, and that which informs the body but that it does not deliberately carry with it.
Sable Elyse Smith. And Here Is A List of Names (Front View), 2016. Illuminated flashing arrow sign, plastic letters, digital c-print, plexiglass. 6 x 8 x 1 feet.
The Curated Section at VOLTA serves a unique purpose within an art fair context; while art fairs mainly provide a direct bridge between artists and collectors, the Curated Section at VOLTA does this as it emphasizes the social responsibility of art and thereby engages a variety of audiences. At a time when public funding for the arts, among other federally funded social programs, is threatened, MoCADA is asking for your help to present what we think is a crucial perspective within the social world and, particularly, the art ecosystem. Our current political administration emphasizes structures that reinforce hierarchies across racial, economic, and gendered identities, insisting on subordination as a means for profitable growth. Donating to this campaign will not only assist us with logistical costs, which include shipping and art handling, production, and the exhibition space itself, but through the proliferation of Sable’s work it will also facilitate an examination on how the structure of incarceration separates an individual from a mentality of freedom as a means to assert state control.
Sable Elyse Smith. Ironwood, 2015. Digital c-print. 30 x 40 inches.
MoCADA has cultivated relationships with emerging artists throughout the Diaspora, nurturing their practices early on in their careers and expanding the scope and reach of their work. As MoCADA continues to grow through various initiatives, including participation in art fairs, expanding to a larger building, and arts programming that foster an international, diasporic community, ensuring that MoCADA maintains an environment where visitors can boldly share their voice is a central priority. MoCADA is eager to work with Sable to advance the conversation on incarceration and its influence on individual behaviors and mindsets through VOLTA’s international platform.
Please support MoCADA in bringing Sable Elyse Smith to VOLTA NY 2017, and donate today.
All donors will be offered a VIP Pass to VOLTA and admission to VOLTA's VIP Preview on Wednesday, March 1st.
Sable Elyse Smith. How We Tell Stories To Children (Still), 2015. Single Chanel Video. 5:10 minutes.
MoCADA is asking for your help in bringing the work of Sable Elyse Smith to an international audience at VOLTA NY 2017.
“Your Body Is A Battleground” references the 1989 work of the same name by Barbara Kruger, as each exhibiting artist in this years Curated Section addresses the relationship between personal experience and political structure. Smith’s work considers the effect of incarceration on the body specifically referencing the past 20 years in which she has visited her father in various California-state prisons. Rooted at the core of her practice is a desire to visualize how trauma is etched into our memory, and that which informs the body but that it does not deliberately carry with it.
Sable Elyse Smith. And Here Is A List of Names (Front View), 2016. Illuminated flashing arrow sign, plastic letters, digital c-print, plexiglass. 6 x 8 x 1 feet.The Curated Section at VOLTA serves a unique purpose within an art fair context; while art fairs mainly provide a direct bridge between artists and collectors, the Curated Section at VOLTA does this as it emphasizes the social responsibility of art and thereby engages a variety of audiences. At a time when public funding for the arts, among other federally funded social programs, is threatened, MoCADA is asking for your help to present what we think is a crucial perspective within the social world and, particularly, the art ecosystem. Our current political administration emphasizes structures that reinforce hierarchies across racial, economic, and gendered identities, insisting on subordination as a means for profitable growth. Donating to this campaign will not only assist us with logistical costs, which include shipping and art handling, production, and the exhibition space itself, but through the proliferation of Sable’s work it will also facilitate an examination on how the structure of incarceration separates an individual from a mentality of freedom as a means to assert state control.
Sable Elyse Smith. Ironwood, 2015. Digital c-print. 30 x 40 inches.MoCADA has cultivated relationships with emerging artists throughout the Diaspora, nurturing their practices early on in their careers and expanding the scope and reach of their work. As MoCADA continues to grow through various initiatives, including participation in art fairs, expanding to a larger building, and arts programming that foster an international, diasporic community, ensuring that MoCADA maintains an environment where visitors can boldly share their voice is a central priority. MoCADA is eager to work with Sable to advance the conversation on incarceration and its influence on individual behaviors and mindsets through VOLTA’s international platform.
Please support MoCADA in bringing Sable Elyse Smith to VOLTA NY 2017, and donate today.
All donors will be offered a VIP Pass to VOLTA and admission to VOLTA's VIP Preview on Wednesday, March 1st.
Sable Elyse Smith. How We Tell Stories To Children (Still), 2015. Single Chanel Video. 5:10 minutes.Organizer
Mocada Brooklyn
Organizer
Brooklyn, NY