Upon viewing this exhibition, I feel as though I was filled with so many stories I will carry on with me forever. Not only has Danielle Scott provided viewers and spectators with a very informative body of works- these works are perhaps one chapter in the book she is continuing to tell through her art and journey. I especially appreciated the lovely arrangement of the pieces and how they slowly transitioned as you moved throughout the room. Listening to Danielle tell her about her journey to these plantations was one of my favorite parts of the artist talk. She did not just collect photographs with the intention of showing them off- she consciously ruffled through hundreds of pages of collections through bookstores all around the country. Each piece of fabrics in these works have been carefully handpicked to fit the story of the person or persons in these compositions. Together all of these small elements create a bigger picture. They are reinventing the lives of those lost, and putting back together the futures of the souls who once also had dreams of living out the royalty they deserved.
The first photo which caught my immediate attention was Ruth Afontaine Family, 2022 mixed medium assemblage and resin. The first word that came to mind when viewing this piece was family. Personally, it is a big part of myself. And I really wanted to know everything about this family. Each person held a different look, some straightforward, some smiling. They are all piling out of this house, that does not have a prestige structure, onto a land that is owned by someone else. They are forced to live out their lives at that moment. That moment of constant fear and question- among the fire that lies beneath their feet. Danielle uses a collection of labels- those written of freed slaves at the time with the identity of who and what they do. Gabriel Griff, 26, steamboating. Born New Orleans, LA. I was left with so much wonder, no only for Gabriel, but every single person in the background of this composition. The inside of the house is boldly peaking out of the front door. Holding its many secrets- almost saying come on in. Let me tell you about who we really are.
3 quotes:
“We see our history as counter memory, using it as a way to know the present and invent the future.” - The Oppositional Gaze, Bell Hooks
“They are bruised, weathered and mistreated, but she has made sure they have names.” - The Beauty in Struggle: Danielle Scott’s ‘Ancestral Call’, Tris McCall
“Photographs furnish evidence” Excerpt from On Photography, Susan Sontag
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