Join us on Tuesday, December 12th, 2024, from 6:00 to 8:00 PM, at the Green Line Performing Arts Center for a special screening of the 2024 Artists-in-Residence Video. This presentation celebrates the creative journeys of Ayanah Moor, Candace Hunter, and Johnaé Strong during their residency with Arts + Public Life and the Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture. Following the screening, engage in a lively talkback session where the artists share insights about their processes, inspirations, and reflections on their work. Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to connect with the artists.
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION:
Remembering Ghosts, the culminating exhibition for APL’s 2024 Artists-in-Residence cohort, features work by Ayanah Moor, Candace Hunter, and Johnaé Strong. This exhibition critically examines the intersections of history, memory, and identity as the artists navigate the residual traces of the past within the present. Through diverse media and conceptual lenses, the works presented in this exhibition explore the complexities of historical erasure, resilience, and the spectral influence of collective and personal memory. By engaging the ethereal, Remembering Ghosts asks viewers to consider how past narratives continue to influence modern society. It encourages contemplation on acts of reclamation and memory to reimagine futures.
In partnership with the Center for the Study of Race, Politics & Culture, Arts + Public Life supports individual artists through the Artists-in-Residence program by advancing the opportunities available to underrepresented artists in the Chicago and national arts scenes. The ten-month paid residency program provides space, materials, and stipends, eliminating barriers to participation. During this program, artists have access to rehearsal, performance, and exhibition space at the Arts Incubator in Washington Park and access to the academic and research resources of the University.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS:
Candace Hunter
Based in Chicago, artist Candace Hunter (chlee) specializes in creating captivating collage, paintings, installations, and performance art. She intricately weaves stories through appropriated materials, offering viewers new landscapes rich with history and beauty. A highly respected Midwest artist, chlee has earned recent honors such as the Elevate Climate Changemakers Award (2022), 3Arts Next Level Award (2021), and the Tim and Helen Meier Foundation Award (2020). Notably, her Brown Limbed Girls series, over 130 painted and collaged 20 x 20 inch works born during the pandemic, spotlight brown girls in joyous states. Featured on billboards, book covers, and in major shows, chlee's art has garnered widespread acclaim. An avid fan of Octavia Butler, she curated an immersive exhibition of Butler's "Xenogenesis Trilogy" and the "Parables" series at the Hyde Park Art Center.
Ayanah Moor
Ayanah Moor, a Chicago-based visual artist, boasts a prestigious presence in permanent collections worldwide, including the Capital Group (Los Angeles), DePaul Art Museum, and the Museum of Contemporary Photography (Chicago). Her solo exhibitions, such as "Undercover" at Manetti Shrem Museum of Art (Davis, California), "Bless Your Heart" at RUSCHMAN (Chicago), and "I Wish I Could Be You More Often" at Cleve Carney Museum of Art (Glen Ellyn), showcase her artistic prowess. Moor has participated in notable group shows at institutions like the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago and the Studio Museum in Harlem. Her impactful work has garnered attention in publications like LA Weekly, ARTFORUM.com, and academic texts. Moor holds an MFA from Tyler School of Art and a BFA from Virginia Commonwealth University.
Johnaé Strong
Johnaé Strong, a Cleveland-born writer, filmmaker, and organizer now based in Chicago, is dedicated to healing Black girls globally. Influenced by her leadership role in BYP100 Chicago and her role as a mother to Akeim and Jari @2chikids, Johnaé's work delves into materiality and time, intertwining film and digital mediums to unveil archival moments. Her art, quickly deciphered by Black audiences, becomes a codex for collective freedom, using symbols like the quilted maps of enslaved Africans. Experimenting with black and white, color, and movement, she animates freedom dreams, with her writing cited in publications such as In These Times and The Nation. Supported by residencies at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and Atlantic Center for the Arts, Johnaé's work is a powerful force in the pursuit of collective liberation.