Existing comment:
The Reconstruction of Saints
2018
Aqua-Resin, polychrome, gold leaf, fiberglass, foam, and plywood
Collection of the artist
Farnsworth has recently been working on a larger scale, and this piece is one of his most ambitious projects to date. His new direction has been profoundly influenced by his artist residencies in Madison, Wisconsin, and Charlotte, North Carolina, where he arrived to witness the aftermath of police shootings of two African Americans, Tony Robinson and Keith Lamont Scott, respectively. styx/vodun and XLIII (on view in the adjacent gallery) emerged from these experiences. Originally, Farnsworth planned an architectural headdress for this portrait to reference Charlotte's historic buildings. However, upon observing the widespread demolition of historic architecture with in the city, he decided to omit it entirely, shearing off the bust at the crown's intended line as a dramatic statement on gentrification and the loss of cultural inheritance. Building upon the theme of societal inheritance, Farnsworth plans to incorporate audio recordings of young people in Charlotte into the piece, recounting their world in their own words, providing "a low cadence of whispered hopes and fears."
This project was supported by a Windgate Fellowship Award from the Center for Craft, with additional support from the McColl Center for Art & Innovation, Dave Bown Projects, 701 Center for Contemporary Art, and Clark Ellefson of Lewis and Clark. |