White Jeans



White Jeans illustrates the oscillating nature of social commentary and artistic practice.

Our identities are encoded into our DNA from the moment of conception, and our life span provides the opportunity to explore the self, realize who we are, and who we will choose to be. Unfortunately, misrepresentations of race, gender and sexual preferences have resulted in increased discrimination. Many individuals are deciding to break free from conventional constructs of invariable sameness.  These ruptures challenge preconceptions of identity within mainstream popular culture, disrupting codes and life.  At the same they encourage us to reshape and reinvent ourselves with actions of leadership and progressive thought.

Leah Brown’s human-like sculptures, Nay Boars, 2017, for example, erupt into a battle of sexes, with anger forming a pictorial relationship between two adversaries. The figures appear to be unable to restrain emotions and converse intelligently.  Their stance and sexual identities commemorate the histories and mythologies, the failed and unstable relationships, that guilt and haunt us all.  This stands in contrast to other examples of conflict found in the exhibition.  I would argue that the socially acceptable behavior of women, by contrast, has emphasized modesty, submission and the refrain from public emotional outbursts and defiance. However, in the case of the transgender community, commendable behaviors are surfacing showing the need to abolish stereotypical behaviors based on gender bias- associated to exterior judgments. 

Jess Kaufman’s work, Untitled, 2017, by contrast, depicts a quietly, authoritative, feminine figure, owning her space in complete delight.  She is a modern day, smirking Mona Lisa. The viewer has no choice but to approach unarmed, open to learn who this person is and the customs practiced. 

The group exhibition White Jeans intends to rhetorically exhibit artists’ investigations with the utmost respect.  There is no desire to exploit any artist and/or any artist’s personal histories and/or identities.  During curatorial process, a clear, concise conversation on the survey was conducted with all the artists requested to participate.

Within the scope of the exhibition, I have implanted curatorial gestures throughout the space. My 
intrepretation behind the artist's works materializes as interventions. The curatorial gestures are not a collaborative creation between the artist and myself, but a creation to captivate a dialogue of collaborative mindset that reassess what it means to be an artist, creator, curator, theorist- in contemporary art.









A special thank you:


Carlos Casou and Tony Lugor at FIU's Digital Lab

John Stewart

Liane Sippin

Jacek Koalinski

Alpesh Patel


For your support






http://carta.fiu.edu/mbus/events/opening-reception-white-jeans/




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