WEATHERING, 2021-2022
The Kreeger Museum
Weathering, 2021
solo presentation
The Kreeger Museum
Washington, DC
presented by The Nicholson Project with curatorial guidance from Adriel Luis.
Weathering is an installation that brings together a collection of Climate Ponchos– wearable sculptures used in the ongoing performance series Climate Immigrants (2017-present). In it the performers wear Climate Ponchos adorned with images that depict various archetypal travelers. The series expands upon issues of immigration by implicating everyone and not just a select group, addressing one of the most pressing topics of our time: climate-triggered immigration in relation to US-centric xenophobia. The Climate Ponchos are paired with a new series of sculpted heads entitled The Plant People (2021), a mixed media sculptural series utilizing familiar objects with unique handmade elements to depict the blooming heads of The Plant People, a fictional group of cultural influencers who see themselves as stewards of the earth. Weathering considers the plight of climate induced global migration and its effects on people of color and the population at large. In Weathering the artist utilizes pervasive and harmful materials currently in heavy circulation across the world in the form of fossil fuel derived plastics not unlike those found in our quotidian lives including in our homes, plumbing, bank cards, food containers, clothing, and even photographic records. Weathering warns us of idly waiting out the storm as we continue to be worn down by long exposure to the atmosphere. The works on view highlight the artist’s interest in fabulating and remixing mythologies to protest our waged war on nature.
photos by Anne Kim | The Nicholson Project | and the artist