Monticello, 2002, cotton, tobacco, hay, cardboard.
Inspired by the photo archive "Without Sanctuary" curated by James Allan. Monticello installation is a meticulous reconstruction of Thomas Jefferson's beloved home Monticello using cash crops: cotton and tobacco considered to be commodities like the slaves he owned. The installation is a satire, setting the viewer up as a tourist to Monticello and sending them off with a souvenir postcard. Only the postcards on display are from actual lynching postcards from 1882-1968.
Photos by Helen McGrath
Be American, 2014, wood, handmade thread letters, painted push pins.
1. Be rich.
2. Be successful. (At anything).
3. Repeat after us: "This is not about race. This is not about race. This is not about race."
4. Smile.
The God Particle, 2013, 35.4” x 47,” cotton and gold thread, wood.
The God Particle is inspired by the discovery of the Higgs-Boson also known as the “God Particle.” The Higgs-Boson is believed to be the key element holding the physical fabric of the universe together.
The Rose (Conway Twitty) , 2018, 9” x 24,” bark, hair extensions.
I lived on a reservation in North Carolina as a toddler. All of the radio stations played country music. Naturally I named my first Cabbage Patch Doll, Merle Haggard. I was the only black girl on the reservation. My mom's partner's daughter Angie was older than me and fell for me right away. She treated me with so much love and as her baby sister right away. I was very little but I remember her kindness. I wasn't allowed on the church bus, Angie carried me in her arms and they told her "that little nigger isn't allowed on here." I was way too young to understand but I do know that Angie gently put me down and told me to stay put. She calmly climbed back onto the bus and punched the person in the face that said I wasn't allowed on the bus. She got off the bus and yelled back "and we ain't coming back neither."
Starter Home, 2008, 64"w x 24"d x 31"h, cardboard, photos.
This piece is an exploration of the American dream post economic collapse of 2008. Starter home represents the collapse of home ownership as definition of American dream and how that disappointment relates to sense of self, identity and entitlement.
Photos by Brian Addison
I wish I had discovered my sexuality in my own time,
15 3/4 x 15 3/4,
La perla bra, wood, pearl pins, flower from birthday and Grandmom’s funeral, 2023
Photos by Tina K Lieberman
