This is an overdue post about the exhibit “here.” at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia. Based around the query “What is the role of ‘place’ in art?” the exhibition presents the work of artists (and collectives) that have saturated their practice within 6 semi-distinct regions: Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Phoenix, Raleigh-Durham, Detroit and Kansas City. Based on the premise that these areas are maligned from the main NYC-LA art markets, ‘here.’ presents complex works that deny the falsehood that regionalism breeds provincialism. Rather than attempt to make an overall statement beyond this, the works of the individual artists and collectives are cleanly presented along with additional helpful didactic text accompaniment.
Artists:
Lewis Colburn, Jennifer Levonian, Megawords,Tim Portlock
Michael Krueger, Erika Nelson, Aaron Storck, Whoop Dee Doo
Bunk News, Paul Coors, Terence Hammonds, Katie Parker and Guy Michael Davis
Liz Cohen, Scott Hocking, Chido Johnson, Abigail Newbold
Elsewhere Collaborative, Harrison Haynes, Stacy Lynn Waddell, Glenda Wharton
Sue Chenoweth, Postcommodity, Aaron Rothman, Gregory Sale
Curators:
- Julien Robson, Curator of Contemporary Art, PAFA
- Christopher Cook, Director and Curator, Salina Art Center, Salina, Kansas
- Mark Harris, Director of the School of Art at the University of Cincinnati
- Rebecca Hart, Associate Curator of Contemporary Art, Detroit Institute of Arts
- Claire Schneider, Independent Curator based in Scottsdale, Arizona
- Teka Selman, Assistant Director of the MFA in Experimental and Documentary Arts at Duke University
Below are just a few photos from the exhibit and opening day events. I encourage you to visit in person if you are in the Philadelphia area. The exhibition closes December 31.
