Disruption. The Exhibition.
Exhibition: March 24 – June 10, 2018
Curated by Orestes González
Reception: Saturday, March 24, 4-6pm
Panel discussion with the artists: Saturday, March 24, 3-4pm
The Center for Photography at Woodstock is pleased to present the exhibition Disruption, curated by Orestes González. This timely exhibition features artists Verónica G Cárdenas, Orestes González, Kris Graves, GD McClintock and Griselda San Martín. Using a broad variety of narrative styles, these five photography-based artists expand their interpretations of the word “disruption” to show how the word manifests itself in the social, political and economic world we live in.
Press coverage: Woodstock Times, Paul Smart, “Looking Through The Wall” (March 22, 2018)
CURATOR’S STATEMENT:
I am proud to present DISRUPTION: The Exhibition at the Center for Photography at Woodstock. My selection of each photo artist was based on my admiration of their previous work that delved on the issues of social conscience, economics and immigration. I looked for work that was developed independently, but with a clear voice.
Despite the fact that these artists initially didn’t know each other, they had a distinct thread in common: a sharp visual commentary of the tumult we are living in the world today, as our economies, our politics and social patterns change and develop drastically and at warp speed.
With an eye for documentary directness but also an unabashed artistic sensitivity, these artists addressed the seismic changes that happen when lives are interrupted or tragically cut short, of lives lived away from family, or separated from their own cultural identities, and of the quiet, daily sacrifices acted out of love and duty by millions of people that often go unnoticed or unappreciated.
As an immigrant kid growing up in the proverbial “melting pot” of this vast polyglot country, I wanted to share their stories…OUR stories.
Orestes González, Curator
ABOUT THE CURATOR:
Orestes González is a NYC-based art photographer and curator. His work has been shown extensively in the US and Latin America, and is in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of NY, the Perez Art Museum in Miami, and the NY Architectural League, amongst others. His first monograph, Julio’s House was published in 2017.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS:
A young potential trump collecting cans in a landfill in Reynosa, Tamaulipas
Verónica G. Cárdenas: A Trump
I wanted to tell the stories of our undocumented immigrants, and to humanize them and their anxieties in the wake of the Trump Presidency. In order to avoid any precarious situation for them and to protect their identity, I decided to cover their faces with a Donald Trump mask.
Being that he is the most powerful person on the planet, it is befitting and ironic that his visage be used to protect them.
Leydy, Havana, Cuba
Leydy, 24, worked in the Flower Market in Havana, Cuba. She had been saving and borrowing for 5 years to fly to Panama, planning to travel north through the coyote pipeline, to eventually enter the USA.
The week she arrived in Panama, President Obama changed the “wet foot/dry foot” status of Cuban immigrants arriving in the States. She is technically stranded in Mexico, where she has no status.
Her whereabouts are currently unknown.
Orestes González: Everyday Stories
Over the years, I have documented people and situations that reflect the turbulent times we live in. Whether it is an encounter with someone I see weekly, or during my travels, where I enjoy talking to new people, I have been marked by what I see and hear in these people’s stories.
The most relevant theme I’ve encountered is how they’ve had to disrupt their lives, away from family and country, in order to survive. Once here, because of their status and our ever growing divisive environment, everyday situations cause continual interruptions that normally should never occur.
As a Cuban-born -American, I can relate to these disruptions and see the commonality in us all.
The Murder of Michael Brown, Ferguson, Missouri
Kris Graves: A Bleak Reality
Kris Graves creates photographs of landscapes and people to preserve memory. The images’ stillness cause the viewer to acknowledge the inevitability of change, and the passage of time in both the natural and built environment. A Bleak Reality is a series of eight photographs made at the exact locations where unarmed black men were murdered by police officers.
Untitled, from the series Triple Wedding
GD McClintock: Triple Wedding
Segundo and Cecilia left Ecuador several years ago, seeking a better life in the United States.
Although married at the courthouse, and now parents of two young daughters, Cecilia and Segundo always planned to have a proper church wedding and reception for family and friends.
Year after year they postponed the ceremony.
Last year Segundo became ill with a life-threatening disease. As he regained his strength after an intensive treatment regimen, Segundo and Cecilia realized that it was time to renew their vows. Their church invited them to celebrate their matrimony with two other couples in a triple wedding.
After the Nuptial Mass and a brief celebration for the three couples at the church, each family held its own reception. For Cecilia and Segundo, family members who could not attend the wedding expressed their wishes via video, from a field in Ecuador.
I was humbled by the invitation to their wedding and hope my photographs are a testament to the love they feel for each other and their family.
www.georgemcclintockphotography.com/
Jose Marquez poses for a photograph that a visitor is taking of his family on the other side of the border wall. Marquez has not been able to hug his daughter Susana in 14 years, since he was deported from the United States after living and working in San Diego for 18 years.
Griselda San Martin: The Wall
The Wall documents families who meet on both sides of the Tijuana-San Diego border fence at Friendship Park at a time of rising xenophobic political tensions. The park is the only binational meeting place along the 2,000-mile border dividing the United States and Mexico.
Besides serving as a meeting place for families, and because of the historical meaning and strategic location of the park, social events such as weddings, sweet sixteens and binational gatherings are held periodically. Activists also gather to demonstrate and raise awareness for social causes.
The Wall examines these border interactions at a time of rising xenophobic political sentiment. These border enforcement practices have reshaped public spaces through a logic of detention and containment. The big and “beautiful” wall that some politicians promise to build already exists.
But, despite the massive metal fences and militarized check points, love has no borders.
EXHIBITION SCHEDULE AND LOCATIONS
The exhibition Disruption will be on view through June 10, 2018. CPW galleries are free & open to the public Wednesday – Sunday, 12pm – 5pm and by appointment. Please note that special hours apply during the holidays. CPW is located at 59 Tinker Street, Woodstock, New York 12498.
Banner image above: Verónica G Cárdenas. Image on home page: Griselda San Martín.