Speaking
Volumes: Transforming Hate showcases the diverse work of 30 artists who
have transformed thousands of anti-Semitic and racist books into an uplifting
and dynamic exhibition. The exhibition is visually powerful, thought-provoking,
sometimes humorous, always challenging, and ultimately deeply moving. The
artist-participants are: Dana Boussard, John Buck, Kristin Casaletto, Enrique
Chagoya, Lei Curtis, Jane Wagonner Deschner, Stephen Glueckert, Jean Grosser,
Charles Gute, Valerie Hellerman, Tim Holmes, Marilyn Humphries, Lisa Jarrett,
David Kamm, Maria Karametou, Lucinda Luvaas, Robbie McClaran, Marc Morris,
Shelly Murney, Ryan Sara Murphy, Faith Ringgold, Jim Riswold, Scott Schuldt,
Clarissa Sligh, Neil Ambrose-Smith, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Tim Speyer, Sara
Steele, Cathy Weber, Valetta.
The story of
Speaking Volumes
began in 2003 when the Montana Human Rights Network in Helena, Montana, acquired
more than 4,000 copies of white supremacist books from a defecting leader of one
of the most virulent hate groups in the nation. The Human Rights Network,
through a partnership with the Holter Museum of Art in Helena, implemented its
vision of transforming the books into works of art with a positive
message.
Katie Knight, then Curator of Education at the Holter Museum,
used her twenty-five years of experience in social justice art and education to
guide the community partnership as they developed
Speaking Volumes:
Transforming Hate. Knight continues to collaborate with and to provide
logistical and programming support to all museums and galleries which host the
exhibition. At The Shiva Gallery venue Knight is working with Dr. Thalia
Vrachopoulos whose curatorial and personal interests in human rights and
justice, resonate with those of Knight's.
After
Speaking Volumes:
Transforming Hate opened in January 2008 at the Holter Museum of Art, it
toured for nearly three years to eleven Montana venues with accompanying
educational programs and curriculum. The Montana Human Rights Network sponsors
and directs the current national tour, which has been successfully hosted in
diverse venues ranging from the Jewish Community Center in La Jolla, California
to the Art and History Center of Lewis-Clark College in Lewiston, Idaho. In
January 2015 the exhibit opened at Living Arts in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where it was
a central feature of a larger community arts and educational program presented
by many Tulsa organizations.
Rarely does an exhibition stimulate so much
conversation and creative response among children, youth, and adults.
Speaking Volumes: Transforming Hate encourages audiences to explore
creative strategies for transforming hate. Visitors often participate in
dialogue to share their own stories and listen to others, deepening empathy for
those who are perceived as "different," and encouraging respect for social
justice.
For more information please contact:The
Anya and Andrew Shiva Gallery
John Jay College
860 11
th
Avenue
New York, NY 10019
gallery@jjay.cuny.edu212-237-1439
www.shivagallery.orgGallery
Hours: 1- 5 PM, M – FAbout John Jay College of
Criminal Justice: An international leader in educating for
justice, John Jay College of Criminal Justice of The City University of New York
offers a rich liberal arts and professional studies curriculum to upwards of
15,000 undergraduate and graduate students from more than 135 nations. In
teaching, scholarship and research, the College approaches justice as an applied
art and science in service to society and as an ongoing conversation about
fundamental human desires for fairness, equality and the rule of law.
For
more information, visit www.jjay.cuny.edu.