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September 15–October 29, 2000
Levy Gallery for the Arts in Philadelphia
Moore College of Art and Design
20th Street & The Parkway, Philadelphia, PA 19103
“Telling the Story: The Intersection of Art and Social
History,” investigates the power of the visual image to heal
wounds, commemorate individuals and events, and document upheaval.
| Featured artists: |
Louis Massiah
Christian Michel
Khalid Nasser
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Artists of Philadelphia Airbrush
Pang Xiong Sirirathasuk Sikoun
Tyeakia
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The exhibition includes urban art—in a variety
of media—that chronicles moments in history for public commemoration
and private meditation.
Throughout their city, the artists of Philadelphia Airbrush have produced In Memory murals—large-scale memorial portraits depicting the deceased with treasured possessions and framed by the names of family and friends left behind. To the surrounding neighborhood, these murals announce, in perpetuity, the tragedy of lives cut short.
Khalid Nasser’s painted Timberland work boots also become emblems,
representing departed loved ones, describing political alliances,
and expressing social commentary on an intimate, wearable scale;
messages, both critical and celebratory, that literally walk through
Philadelphia.
Tyeakia creates obsessively compiled collages that portray
the learned, the leaders, and the famous of the world and then
laminates photocopies of her works to pass out to neighborhood
youth, passersby, visitors to her studio, whoever may be interested.
Although each collage highlights someone of a distinct race or
country, together these pieces form a larger, unified whole that
addresses our collective humanity.
Both Christian Michel and Pang Xiong Sirirathasuk Sikoun
recount, explicitly, the political events that shaped their lives,
their families, and their countries. Christian Michel’s realist
paintings illustrate political unrest in his native Haiti as well
as his trepidation at the prospect of emigration to the United
States. Sikoun’s careful and detailed traditional Hmong embroideries
illustrate the horrors of armed invasion, Cambodian displacement,
and escape to a new country.
Louis Massiah’s film, The Bombing of Osage Avenue,
tells the story of Move. Massiah commits the event to celluloid
history, creating a woven narrative of facts and memories—exposing
truths that continue to affect not only that West Philadelphia
neighborhood, but the city at large.
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Opening reception
Friday, September 15, from 6:30 to 8:00 pm (following the lecture).
Universal Creative Arts Dance & Drum Ensemble of Camden,
New Jersey, will entertain guests during the reception: A Sensational
and Electrifying African, Cultural, Aerobic, Creative, and Praise
Dance and Drum Performance.
6:30 pm, Moore Atrium, admission free.
From Conflict to Peace
Concurrent exhibition
Moore Atrium
September 22–October 1
Mural reproductions and photographs created by the Bogside artists of Derry, Northern Ireland. Recounting “the troubles” of the 1960s, these powerful murals—originally painted on the ends of housing blocks—seek to forge a path to reconciliation through understanding.
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Urban Exposures
Panel discussion and reception
Wednesday, September 27, at 5:30 pm
Moore Auditorium
Panel members Louis Massiah, Philadelphia Airbrush artist Vincent Velez, Jr., Bogside muralist Tom Kelly, and Matthew (Mattyboy) Hart of Spiral Q Puppet Theater will discuss the political and social impact and implications of public art created within the community. A reception, sponsored by the Bards Bar and Restaurant-featuring Guinness Stout and Guinness Bread Pudding-follows at 7:30 pm in the Moore Atrium. Admission to both the talk and reception is free.
Booksigning,
Slide-Lecture, and Reception: African Style: Down to the
Details by Sharne Algotsson
Friday, October 27, at 5:30 pm
The galleries and Moore’s Center for Professional Development
and Education (CPDE) will co-host a booksigning, slide-lecture,
and reception. Owner of Inside Design Ltd., co-author of The
Spirit of African Design, and instructor of interior design
for CPDE, Algotsson offers practical advice for creating African-inspired
interiors. Books will be available for purchase.
An illustrated brochure
accompanies the exhibition.
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