BmoreArt’s Picks: April 25 – May 1
This Week: Shawn Holmes curator talk at Motor House, Ada Pinkston, Will Pappenheimer, and Mollye Bendell at UMBC CIRCA, Jackie Milad x Fred Wilson x Nekisha Durrett exhibition opens at the BMA, The Walters’ Across Asia College Takeover, Reframing Futures II opening reception at Goucher’s Silber Gallery, the Waverly Book Festival, Alx Velozo, Saar Shemesh, RA Walden reception at Current Space, Ami Brabson’s Resilience & Joy at Baltimore Theatre Project, and the annual Ford Lecture at The Walters with Robert D. Mowry — PLUS call for nominations for the Poet Laureate of Maryland and other featured opportunities.
BmoreArt’s Picks presents the best weekly art openings, events, and performances happening in Baltimore and surrounding areas. For a more comprehensive perspective, check the BmoreArt Calendar page, which includes ongoing exhibits and performances, and is updated on a daily basis.
To submit your calendar event, email us at events@bmoreart.com!
Art In The Hands Of Men | Curator Talk
Tuesday, April 25 :: 7-10pm
@ Motor House
Described as the Wu-Tang Clan of Baltimore’s art scene, “Art In The Hands Of Men” is a collective of premiere talent from various disciplines. The exhibit, curated by Shawn Holmes, will place emphasis on the duality in nearly every piece of art in the exhibit and is reflective of the duality of man; it is through duality that we are unified.
AR/XR: Ada Pinkston, Will Pappenheimer, and Mollye Bendell
Wednesday, April 25 :: 5-6:30pm
@ UMBC CIRCA
Augmented reality (AR) is an interactive experience that combines the real world and computer-generated content. The overlaid sensory information can be constructive (additive to the natural environment), or destructive (masking of the natural environment). This experience is seamlessly interwoven with the physical world, resulting in a mixed reality (XR) environment. This panel discussion will focus on the work of three contemporary artists who each use augmented reality technologies as part of their work in unique and compelling ways.
Histories Collide: Jackie Milad x Fred Wilson x Nekisha Durrett
Wednesday, April 26 | Ongoing through March 2024
@ the Baltimore Museum of Art
Following an open call to artists based in Maryland and neighboring states, Nekisha Durrett of Washington, D.C. and Jackie Milad of Baltimore were selected by a jury to create new works in dialogue with Fred Wilson’s Artemis/Bast (1992). The sculpture joins the body of Artemis, Greek goddess of the hunt, and the head of Bast (also known as Bastet), the more ancient Egyptian cat goddess. The black feline head sits atop the white plaster body, asserting Africa as a vital source of knowledge across the ancient world. The sculpture counters narratives that erased Africa’s cultural contributions.
Durrett and Milad responded with compelling proposals that engage with the provocation: “What images and thoughts emerge when myths and histories collide?”
For her multimedia works for the exhibition, Milad will create two large-scale collaged paintings, a cut-out fabric painting, as well as a bronze statuette. Her paintings incorporate ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs and ancient American figures, pictures and letters from her family, irreverent pop culture references, fragments of poems, and contemporary aesthetics. Hot pink is a dominant hue, and hip-hop lyrics swirl their way into her collages.
For her proposed installation, Durrett turned to the legacy of Harriet Tubman and will produce an abstract study of Tubman’s revolutionary and visionary way of thinking. The multi-media work will feature a 10-foot black reflective circle, mounted to the wall and bisected by a line of white light. The circumference will be ringed with soil collected from the root of a tulip poplar known as the Witness Tree at Mt. Pleasant Acres Farms in Preston, Maryland, with permission from its stewards, Paulette Greene and Donna Dear. Born into slavery near this site, Tubman escaped in 1849 but returned in 1854 to rescue her father Ben, a free laborer, and her enslaved brothers Ben, Robert, and Henry.
Co-curated by Cecilia Wichmann, Associate Curator of Contemporary Art, and Dave Eassa, Director of Public Engagement
A jury of distinguished cultural workers, including Angela N. Carroll, Teri Henderson, Ashley Minner, and Ginevra Shay, consulting with George Ciscle as the jury’s advisor, selected proposals by Durrett and Milad for commission.
