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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Brianna Nelson, Communications &
Community Engagement Coordinator,
415-863-1414 x103, press@somarts.org
SOMArts Cultural Center Presents
VISIONS INTO INFINITE ARCHIVES
Exhibition January 14–February 10, 2016
Opening Event Thursday, January 14, 6–9pm
30 artists of color honor the non-linearity of time to create an interactive and infinite archive of universal depths
December 8, 2015, San Francisco, CA— SOMArts Cultural Center presents Visions Into Infinite Archives, a group exhibition curated by Black Salt Collective that manifests alternative futures as well as alternative pasts to explore the expansive interconnectedness of individual and cultural narratives. On view with accompanying public programming January 14 to February 10, 2016, Visions Into Infinite Archives features artwork in many media from 30 artists of color contributing to an archive that defies a Western, anthropological approach to recording and sharing histories and trajectories of cultural experience. Through murals, light and textile installations, ritualistic expressions and film screenings, the exhibition puts the past and future into conversation with present moments of cyclical and institutional oppression to create a space where healing can take place and evolve.
Visions Into Infinite Archives, opening with a free public reception on Thursday, January 14, 6pm to 9pm, is the second of three SOMArts Commons Curatorial Residency exhibitions in the 2015–16 season. Oakland and Los Angeles based Black Salt Collective utilizes the residency opportunity to mount their first large-scale exhibition, featuring the work of collective members Sarah Biscarra Dilley, Grace Rosario Perkins, Anna Luisa Petrisko and Adee Roberson, as well as additional artists selected by the collective.
Black Salt Collective honors the non-linearity of time with an infinite archive of universal depths. “Comprised of objects, bodies, conversations, and multimedia artworks, this universe is in constant dialogue and flux,” said the Black Salt Collective, “Negating the pretense of an archive that distorts and fractures the relationship between living culture, object and community our archive supersedes these binds through complex and interdependent narratives held within and beyond us. Visions into Infinite Archives manifests the dynamic capacity of a boundless and liminal archive.”
“Protection from Unuttered Greed,” Indira Allegra’s textile intervention for navigating civic meetings, business meetings, art functions and dates, features the weaving of hand-dyed linen, bamboo and cotton as well as abalone as an alternate mode of documentation.
In the multi-channel video installation “Gallup Motel Butchering,” artist collective Postcommodity offers a gritty hyper-real depiction of a butchering, revealing how a traditional act of cultural self-determination can appear violent and disorienting within the context of a “non-place” and pose a poetic, metaphorical transgression against the assumptions of the Western imagination.
Through multi-media installation and an oral storytelling performance that will take place at the opening on Thursday, January 14, Jeepneys + some times [sic] present “Let Me Be The One: A History of a Decolonized Service.” The artwork features video documentation as well as sculptural elements and costumes from a 2015 performance titled “a Jeepneys video shoot // some times a set” in which performers were invited to dance, play, bartend and enact other forms of labor for and with an audience, resulting in a shift of the context and structure of service and labor. “Let Me Be The One: A History of a Decolonized Service,” is an archive within Visions Into Infinite Archives that serves as a platform–– metaphorically, as well as literally–– to engage with other artworks in the show. The sculptures also act as plinths for other artists’ works.
The exhibition’s additional public programming includes an afternoon of film screenings on Saturday, January 30, 12pm to 4pm, as well as a closing ceremony and reception on Thursday, February 4, 6pm to 9pm.
CALENDAR LISTINGS
Exhibition
January 14–February 10, 2016
Gallery hours: Tuesday–Friday 12–7pm & Saturday 12–5pm
somarts.org/infinitearchives
Opening Reception
Thursday, January 14, 6–9pm
somarts.org/infiniteopening
Featuring performances from Chochenyo activist and poet Vince Medina, Hermano Milagroso and Jeepneys + some times in direct dialogue with the exhibition and its themes, the unveiling activates a monthlong journey into the archive. With live documentation of the performances and event itself, the archive continues to expand in each moment.
Film Screenings
Saturday, January 30, 12–4pm
somarts.org/infinitescreenings
Spanning genre and form, these personal and often humorous films by an intergenerational mix of Black, Brown and indigenous filmmakers engage in sensory observations about mythology, emotionality, visibility, spirituality and cultural preservation and loss. The program concludes with the 1995 feature length experimental documentary Bontoc Eulogy, in which director Marlon E. Fuentes memorializes the 1,100 Filipino tribal natives brought to the U.S. to be a "living exhibit" at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair. A full schedule and brief descriptions of the films are available online at somarts.org/infinitescreenings.
Closing Ceremony & Reception
Thursday, February 4, 6–9pm
somarts.org/infiniteclosing
Join the artists and curators for ceremony and celebration with drinks and musical delights. Featuring live sets by special guest musician Ryan Dennison (Deadrezkids, Fort Wingate, NM), as well as Tropic Green (Adee Roberson), plus an all-vinyl DJ set by Bay Area favorite Brown Amy (Hard French, Natural High), the closing ceremony and reception is the final chance to add your presence to the archive.
The exhibition and all related events are free to attend and take place at SOMArts Cultural Center, 934 Brannan St. (between 8th & 9th Streets), San Francisco, CA, 94103, unless otherwise noted. SOMArts is wheelchair/ADA accessible.
ARTISTS, FILMMAKERS & PERFORMERS
Indira Allegra
Christopher Ando
Natalie Ball
Kanakan Balintagos
Sarah Biscarra Dilley
Diyan BukoBomba
Sofia Canales
Thirza Cuthand
Ryan Dennison
DJ Brown Amy
Marlon E. Fuentes
Melanie Griffin
Essence Harden
Elisa “Pooper” Harkins
Lonnie Holley
Jose Luis Iniguez
Jeepneys + some times
Eve LaFountain
Vince Medina
Wura-Natasha Ogunji
Olen Perkins
Grace Rosario Perkins
Postcommodity
Miko Revereza
Adee Roberson
Jihaari Terry
TextaQueen
Wizard Apprentice
Paula Wilson
Marilyn Wong
ABOUT THE COMMONS CURATORIAL RESIDENCY
The Commons Curatorial Residency Program nurtures a creative cultural environment in the Bay Area by providing space and support for exhibitions that take risks, promote cultural connectivity and learning, and instigate accessible, multifaceted participation in the arts. Selected artists and groups receive support consisting of a $3,000 grant, a month-long exhibition at SOMArts, 80+ hours of technical assistance, and help with traditional and social media outreach to connect their work with new audiences. Through this support, Bay Area artists can engage the community, expand their practice and turn vision into reality.
ABOUT SOMARTS CULTURAL CENTER
SOMArts Cultural Center, founded in 1979, cultivates access to the arts within the Bay Area by collaborating with community-focused artists and organizations. Together, we engage the power of the arts to provoke just and fair inclusion, cultural respect and civic participation.
SOMArts plays a vital role in the arts ecosystem by helping activate the arts citywide. We do this by providing space and production support for non-profit events, as well as fairs and festivals throughout the Bay Area, and offering a robust program of art exhibitions, classes, events and performances that are affordable and accessible to all. SOMArts’ exhibition programs receive critical support from the San Francisco Arts Commission and The San Francisco Foundation, and are sponsored in part by a grant from Grants for the Arts.
SOMArts is located at 934 Brannan Street—between 8th and 9th—within 2 blocks of 101, I-80, Muni lines and bike paths. For public information call 415-863-1414 or visit somarts.org. Stay connected by following us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
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