The Community Arts Network of Oneonta (CANO) and the Living Archive Project are pleased to announce The Day is a Book We Keep on Reading, a small group exhibition opening on Friday, March 31 with a reception from 5:00 to 8:00 pm at CANO, 11 Ford Avenue in Oneonta. The show will run through April 22, 2023. Artists include Adrianna Newell, Christina Hunt Wood, Ellen Blalock, Jacinta Bunnell, and Jonathan Macagba.
“The Living Archive Project presents CANO with an exciting opportunity for our galleries to be transformed into a safe space where visitors can listen to, and engage with, five unique approaches to interacting with the mundane through the lenses of regional, culturally underrepresented artists,” said Hope Von Stengel, CANO’s Executive Director.
According to artist and curator Christina Hunt Wood, each artist uses everyday objects, routine actions, and often overlooked moments to explore identity or personal histories and capture a sense of place. “The goal is to show viewers how the mundane can be a powerful tool for communicating a lived experience,” she said.
Oneonta’s Adrianna Newell is exhibiting photos documenting their morning ritual as a Black woman. Common objects are set against a chic, Pepto-pink background, but even in this studio setting, the objects remain true to themselves—a piece of toast on a plate includes scattered crumbs, and a set of combs includes the glisten and stain of oils and pomades with strands of hair tangled into their teeth.
Multimedia artist and the show’s curator, Christina Hunt Wood, is based in Delhi and works within the themes of rural life and everyday expressions of power. Her video work uses the “how-to” genre to explore the way ideas from multiple influences can come together and become a dissonant cultural belief. In her assemblages, Wood uses beer can litter found on the backroads of our region to make visually attractive and conceptually unnerving works of art.
Syracuse-based quilter, Ellen Blalock presents two quilts in the African American story quilt tradition. Her pieces replace quilts that were stolen from her family while also passing down her family’s history—one that also tells the disproportionately high incarceration rate of Black men in America.
Hudson Valley-based artist, Jacinta Bunnell uses old keys, decorated with paint and handmade yarn lanyards, as a metaphor for their childhood as a “latchkey kid” in the 80s. “Jacinta spent their days home alone crafting for hours—it kept them busy and from feeling alone. Jacinta has created joyful work that acknowledges that part of themself and is a monument to other latchkey kids whom Jacinta celebrates in her artist statement: “You are tender, tough, and unequivocally resilient. Also, I’m really proud of you. These keys are in honor of you.”
Jonathan Macagba’s photos were taken during the Covid-19 shutdown after the regular practice of documenting his everyday observations around his Brooklyn neighborhood was forced indoors. Common household objects, such as a lemon or an avocado, began taking on a new meaning. A small toy figurine placed on a table beside a lemon suddenly felt like an encounter in a magical land.
In conjunction with the exhibition, there will be an interactive wall where CANO visitors are provided with a prompt and invited to illustrate their responses. The wall will be photographed and included as part of the living archive at the show's conclusion. Additionally, Wood will offer a youth workshop on April 8 from 2-4 pm at CANO called “This Boring Life: Making the Ordinary Interesting,” where students will experiment with drawing, video, assemblage, and photography.
“This is not just a collaboration between The Living Archive Project and CANO," remarked Von Stengel. "What makes this exhibition such an unordinary experience is the interactive aspect that inspires viewers of all ages, especially children, to roll up their sleeves and collaborate with the artists' work.”
CANO’s Gallery hours are Monday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 12:00 to 2:00 pm (except holidays). For more information about The Day is a Book We Keep on Reading and other programs of the Living Archive Project visit www.livingarchive-catskills.
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