Reconstructing Identity: An Exploration of Identity and Diaspora Through Artistic Practice

Reconstructing Identity: An Exploration of Identity and Diaspora Through Artistic Practice encompasses the work of artists connected by a shared interest in the interrogation of identity when the sense of place is ever-changing. Utilizing varying materials and techniques, the work tells multiple stories. Some may observe cultural differences in the experiences of those within the black & brown diasporas. Others may explore aesthetic, social, cultural, and political subjects that examine where identity and sense of place., thus allowing for a better understanding of the communities we inhabit. The featured local artists include Christopher Carter, Kandy Lopez-Moreno, Duwane Coates, Sharon Norwood, Onajide Shabaka, Rhea Leonard, Adler Guerrier, Asser Saint Val, Morel Doucet, Franciso Maso, and T. Elliot Mansa. As part of the growing conversation around art from artists of Africa and its diaspora, Reconstructing Identity examines different cultural identities, significant similarities, and important differences that make up varying definitions of blackness. Influenced heavily by environment, community, and history, identity is explored, deconstructed, and reconstructed.