2018 Grantee Bronx Art Center is currently showing: Historical Amnesia

JC Lenochan [image description: a man is at the centre of a drawing in white chalk on a blackboard, he is being washed with very long brushes by people who are two thirds smaller than him, there is also indecipherable text around him and a map of africa]

Curated by Gabriel de Guzman, Historical Amnesiaexposes and grapples with the lasting effects of colonialism, exoticism, and intolerance on today’s culture. Featuring Kris Grey, Sara Jimenez, jc lenochan, Joiri Minaya, and Jade Yumang, artists sift through forms of loss, obscurity, and trauma by using the body as a conduit. These artists recover suppressed narratives, giving body to the hushed voices of those who have been relegated to the status of Other.

This exhibition is especially timely during our current political climate, as affordable health care, women’s reproductive rights, and equality for LGBT people are under threat. Black, brown, female, and LGBT bodies are becoming political battlegrounds. While these artists uncover injustices of the past, they reveal the continued need to inform and empower individual and collective memory. The exhibition will be populated by sculpture, drawings, and video, as well as installations that consider aspects of the space and the experience of the viewer. At the opening reception, artists will also activate the space, giving the exhibition themes another corporal dimension.

Historical Amnesia points to the ruptures in accepted histories and power structures. The artists open up these fissures, allowing diverse narratives to come to the surface. Using intricate processes, they portray the figure as a vehicle through which shadowy pasts are given material form. In this way, the artists serve as quasi-archaeologists, collecting and repositioning cultural residue, uncovering stories that were buried by time and neglect.

HISTORICAL AMNESIA

Feb 14 - March 24

Curated by Gabriel de Guzman

Events Program

Saturday, February 24

6-9pm: The Gathering + Open Mic

Wednesday, March 7

6:30pm: Artist Talk with Kris Grey, Sara Jimenez and jc lenochan