Mona Sharma, From Justice Takes a Holiday series, Vector drawing printed on vinyl, 2ft by 4ft, 2013
A Bomb, With Ribbon Around It
South Asian Women’s Creative Collective (SAWCC) Annual Visual Arts Show
Curated by Raúl Zamudio
On view: December 14, 2013 – January 18, 2014
December 14, 2013 – Opening Reception
4–5pm: Slide slam with participating artists (Queens Museum theater)
5–7pm: Opening reception (Partnership Gallery)
January 11, 2014
Public program TBA
January 18, 2014
4–7pm: Curator walk-through, artists’ talk, and closing reception
The exhibition’s title dovetails on the Surrealist André Breton’s famous remark upon encountering Frida Kahlo’s art: “a ribbon around a bomb.” His poetic description of Kahlo’s painting was based on its differentiation from her male Mexican artistic contemporaries, for almost half her oeuvre consists of self-portraiture where social and political questions were ciphered through her protean identity and personal history. Kahlo’s sense of self was so complicated and layered that it unquestionably shaped her artistic self-fashioning that included, among other characters, a male deer, a mother, a baby, androgynous woman, Parvati the Hindu Goddess, an indigenous bride, identical twins, and an invalid.
Breton’s descriptive will be used as curatorial foil in presenting works by South Asian women that metaphorically depict the self in personal, social or cultural guises that will be as attractive, unassuming, and pristine as a beautiful ribbon. Yet untying that ribbon triggers an explosion of subject matter that addresses contemporary conditions of globalization manifesting in politics, immigration, gender equality, sexuality, religion and so forth. Exhibited artworks include painting, work-on-paper, sculpture, installation, photography, video, and performance. A publication will accompany the exhibition with reproductions of artists’ works, their bios and statements, and an essay by the curator.
For more information on the curator, Raúl Zamudio, please visit his website.
The South Asian Women’s Creative Collective (SAWCC) has served South Asian women since 1997 and has earned a reputation for showcasing cutting-edge work that deals intelligently with issues of gender and cultural representation. Currently, our programs include monthly events presenting the work of South Asian women artists; Practice/Process/Portfolio, a studio circle for visual artists; a listserv for South Asian women; and an annual auction, exhibition and literature festival open to the public. SAWCC provides women of South Asian descent links to various communities and encourages their growth as artists by providing a venue to exchange ideas and feedback on their creative work and network with other South Asian women artists, educators, community workers, and professionals.
