Glasstire counts down the top five art events in Texas.
For last week’s picks, please go here.
Vicki Meek, “The Glass Menagerie #2,” 2021-2022, mixed-media, 16 x 14 1/4 x 6 inches.
1. Vicki Meek: At What Point Do We Disappear?: Black Women’s Obsession with White Femininity
Talley Dunn Gallery (Dallas)
April 23 – July 2, 2022
From Talley Dunn Gallery and the artist:
“I am exploring in At What Point Do We Disappear: Black Women’s Obsession with White Femininity how deeply ingrained this self-hate is, not only here in America, but also in Africa where women sport long, straight-haired wigs and bleach their skin in attempts to ‘lighten up’ their complexion so that they can be more appealing to African men. This fascination with whiteness extends beyond simply skin color and hair texture. It manifests in obsessions with light-colored eyes, thin bodies, as well as altered noses and lips.
Clearly, all women, whatever their racial group, are constantly faced with standards of beauty that are unreachable thanks to media images replete with idealized models. But in the case of white women who aspire to attain this idealized beauty, they need not change the basic physical qualities of their racial group to realize this standard of beauty. Black women must reject their fundamental physical being if they are to attain this standard.”
Hakeem Adewumi, “The Next Kingship Belongs to Us,” 2022.
2. Hakeem Adewumi: Bastard of the Diaspora
Houston Museum of African American Culture
April 16 – June 15, 2022
From HMAAC:
“The exhibition title, Bastard of the Diaspora, hints at the artist’s exploration to find and establish his place within the African Diaspora—a lifelong search for Hakeem Adewumi, a Nigerian-American photographer. On that journey, Adewumi balances who he is, with who he is expected to be. Born in the U.S. to an American mother and Nigerian father, the artist was largely influenced by Black American culture. According to Adewumi, ‘My Nigerian heritage was something left for everyone else to define for me. I had no understanding of what it meant to be Nigerian. So I had to take the space on the margin to claim that identity for myself.’
Adewumi’s search for identity is presented through a series of life-size self- portraits, in which the artist prompts viewers to consider the ways in which the notion of voyage—a nuanced and complex experience to be taken across time and space – shapes identity. Specifically queer identity. Adewumi asks viewers to bring what it means to be seen, to the conversation, and for him and others, what it means to be queer.”
Ursula Rogers, “Untitled,” 2020, digital photograph, 8 x 12 inches.
3. Ursula Rogers: Resistance Is…
Spellerberg Projects (Lockhart)
May 27 – June 5, 2022
From Spellerberg Projects:
“In her homecoming show, Resistance Is…, Ursula Rogers debuts her collection of protest photography taken around the world spanning the past six years. Born and raised in Lockhart, TX, Rogers has traveled extensively across the globe, documenting organized protests and other community events. The photographs featured in Resistance Is… are sampled from a larger collection of Rogers’ protest photography and offer a glimpse into cultures and social issues that are both close to home and abroad, representing the human impulse to gather and rally for human rights despite varying platforms or physical proximities.
In bringing these moments to Lockhart, Rogers reflects on the ways that her hometown has progressed since her childhood – in December, a Confederate Monument was removed after standing in front of Caldwell County Courthouse for 98 years, largely attributed to community efforts organizing BLM protests in the Summer of 2020 – and yet, how things are still very much the same. By exhibiting acts of solidarity in resistance to systematic oppression and other social issues, Resistance Is… reminds viewers of the power of the people.”
Payton Koranek, “Ambiguous.”
4. Payton Koranek: Quiescent
K Space Contemporary (Corpus Christi)
May 6 – June 24, 2022
From K Space Contemporary:
“Quiescent is a solo exhibition of figurative ceramics by Payton Koranek, including wall-dependent sculptural faces/heads as well as more fully formed busts and torsos. Koranek experiments with distorted proportions and interesting surfaces accented with elements like insects and plants. Many of her figures wear expressions of weariness, discontent or disbelief.
Quiescent is a manifestation of the emotional weight of uncertainty and longing. The lived experience is full of forked paths; growth and progress are dictated by decisions of what to hold onto and when to let go. These sculptures express that pivotal moment, impeded by the notion of finality and inhabiting the tension of the in-between.”
Deneece Harrell Ham, “Treasure of Darkness” from the series, “Surrender,” porcelain, gold leaf, and gold composite, 11.5 x 11 x 11 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist
5. 24th San Angelo National Ceramic Competition
San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts
April 8 – June 26, 2022
From the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts:
“The National Ceramic Competition is a juried exhibit that features work from leading ceramic artists as well as undiscovered new talent from across North America. The San Angelo Museum Endowment for Ceramic Events sponsors the event with additional support provided by Darlene and John Williams of Dallas, Angelo State University and The Old Chicken Farm Art Center. In addition to the opening at the Art Museum, other events in nearby locations will take place Friday night as part of Downtown Stroll, with a shuttle bus available to transport visitors to the different venues.”
