Face To Face - Joseph Delaney
November 2 - December 8, 2018
Images of Human Rights Portfolio
February 1 - 23, 2019
The South African Bill of Rights was born out of a long struggle against racial segregation and human rights violations. Until the first democratic election in 1994, the majority of South Africans had been excluded from participating in the political process. Talks in the early 1990s between political prisoner Nelson Mandela and then South African leader F.W. DeKlerk ultimately led to free elections and a new government which aimed to respect the rights of all its citizens.
Images of Human Rights features 29 fine art prints, created by artists representing the nine provinces of South Africa and hand printed by master printmaker Jan Jordaan. The print portfolio was conceived of and released in 1996 by the Images of Human Rights Portfolio Committee, in commemoration of the newly post-Apartheid nation's Bill of Rights. Funds generated from the sale of portfolios are deposited in the Artists for Human Rights Trust account and are used by Amnesty International and other organizations for human rights education programs for the young people of South Africa. This set of prints is being circulated in North America as one of a series of activities between Michigan State University and a consortium of agencies in South Africa, including the African National Congress; Centre for Cultural Studies, University of Fort Hare; and Mayibuye Centre, University of the Western Cape.
Breach: Alison Saar
April 7 - 29, 2017
Alison Saar weaves narratives relating to the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 into the mixed-media sculpture and paintings featured in Breach. Saar explores issues of gender, race, racism, and the African diaspora. She mines mythology, ritual, history, music, and her biracial heritage as sources for her work. During a 2013 residency at the Joan Mitchell Center in New Orleans, Saar was dismayed to see how little had been done to rebuild African American communities devastated by Hurricane Katrina eight years earlier. Upon her return to Los Angeles, she began researching the histories of American floods and the effect on African Americans. The Great Mississippi River Flood of 1927, described as one of the worst natural river disasters in U.S. history, piqued her interest. Heavy rains resulted in the river breaching levees, creating a historic catastrophe that had a profound impact on the life of African Americans living in the Mississippi Delta. The flood exposed the conditions of poor African American sharecroppers and tenant farmers and their relationship with cotton plantation owners. The flood also resulted in social, cultural, federal policy, and political changes. With water imagery woven throughout, Breach is the culmination of Saar's creative research on American rivers and their historical relationship to the lives of African Americans. Through mixed media sculpture, paintings, and works on paper, she explores floods not only as natural phenomena; but also the complex interaction of social, cultural, and political factors associated with flooding and its aftermath.
Reprocessed
August 4 - 19, 2017
Reprocessed is an exhibition of art by three Knoxville artists who use found imagery and materials to create their unique pieces. The UT Downtown Gallery is pleased to display woven work by Judi Gaston and mixed media pieces by Kelly Hider and Beth Meadows. Judi Gaston recalls as a child poring over books with photographs of exotic places. Now she seizes every opportunity to visit far away lands – Kenya, India, Peru, the Amazon Basin, Australia, Samoa… She tries to incorporate some of the contributions that these cultures have made, blending them in new and distinctive forms using old buttons, beads, patching, knotting and embroidery techniques in her woven clothing. Along with her wearable fashions, she also designs a recycled wearable art series. She likes making wearables that have a history of having lived previous lives. Beth Meadows' artwork is inspired by fashion and design, folk art, children's books, and the strength, confidence, and beauty of women. She lives and works in Knoxville, Tennessee. Kelly Hider was raised in Rochester, NY. She received her BFA from SUNY Brockport in 2007, and an MFA from the University of Tennessee in 2011. She is a founding member of the Vacuum Shop Studios, where her studio is currently located, and is Co-Chair of the Dogwood Regional Fine Arts Exhibit. Hider is the Gallery Coordinator at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts and resides in Knoxville, TN.