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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Linda DeRocher or Larry Jens Anderson October 01, 2010 (205) 328-0553 x26 www.SpaceOneEleven.org lindaderocher@SpaceOneEleven.org 2409 2nd Avenue North, Birmingham, Alabama Space One Eleven presents: *Race*Sex*Politics*Religion—What not to Talk About Birmingham, AL-- Space One Eleven, the leading artists-led visual arts non-profit in Birmingham and a member of The Andy Warhol Initiative for the Visual Arts is presenting: “*Race*Sex*Politics*Religion*--What not to talk about." Opening reception: November 5, 2010, 6 – 8 PM November 5, 2010 thru January 28, 2011 Gallery Hours: Tuesday-Friday, 10 AM – 5 PM Race, sex, politics and religion are all considered taboo topics in polite company, especially in the South. Space One Eleven invited artist/curator Larry Jens Anderson to create an exhibit that places these forbidden subjects onto a pedestal, compelling the audience to have an open conversation. This exhibit is second in the series, “Found Around the South, Two,” and is entitled "*Race*Sex*Politics*Religion--What Not to Talk About." Anderson will use the artists' intentional works to create accidental collisions and sympathies—much like society suffers and sometimes enjoys. All 22 artists reside or had their beginnings in the Deep South; they are: Larry Jens Anderson, Radcliff Bailey, Michael Brown, Thornton Dial, Monica Ellis, Zachary Friedline, Stephen Hayes, Darius Hill, Christopher Hutchinson, Mariah Kirby Smith, Forest McMullin, Jim Neel, Elin O’Hara Slavick, Fahamu Pecou, Omar Richardson, Sonja Rieger, Jon Riis, Shana Robbins, Andrew Scott Ross, Robert Sherer, Jonathan Terranova, Brad Thomas, and Kara Walker. The exhibition is being documented by the widely read art critic, Rebecca Dimling Cochran, who has published in Art In America, Art & Antiques, Art Review, Flash Art, Frieze, New Art Examiner and Sculpture among others. SOE's main gallery will be painted in wide black and white stripes because the four subjects—race, sex, politics, religion— are often framed as black or white without shades of gray. The carnival stripes reference the chaotic nature of all the issues Anderson is attempting to address. Placing these issues in the carnival’s ring throws them out of their normal context, where we tend to examine them with a somber tone. Examining race, sex, politics and religion under the carnival big top puts these issues into a reality of the spectacular and forces viewers to realize the absurd nature of the conflict that usually surrounds them. Anderson has also chosen to list the participating artists into societal categories: 15 Caucasians, 6 Blacks, 14 men, 4 women, 4 gay people, 1 non-American. These labels arouse the curiosity of the audience, who will most likely attempt to figure out which piece of art is made by a woman, or a gay man or the white person, for example. In this way, Anderson points out that it is not entirely possible to figure this out. Each work is a reflection on the individual artist’s own experience with religion, gender and/or race. However, labeling the artists as such also proves that race, religion, gender and political alliance do not matter when it comes to creating something that evokes these controversies. The exhibit will run from November 5, 2010 to January 28, 2011. Space One Eleven is located at 2409 Second Avenue North. Space One Eleven was founded in 1986 in response to the cultural isolation many artists experienced providing a much needed venue for exhibitions alongside their counterparts from around the globe. ### Deeply grounded in place, Space One Eleven’s mission is to provide professional opportunities for visual artists, create a forum for public understanding of contemporary art, and offers art education to area youth. |
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