Programming events:
Opening Reception – Friday, September 16, 7:00-9:00pm
Artist & Curator Talk – Saturday, October 15, 3:30 – 5:30pm
A Night of Two Performances – Thursday, October 20, 6:30-8:30pm
Thrive: performed by Kelly King and Contradiction Dance & Select By The Translated Movement: Performed by Heloisa Escudero
Curated By Nehemiah Dixon III & Spencer Dormitzer
Artists: Ani Bradberry, Hebron Chism, Nicoletta De La Brown, Jim Doran, Nekisha Durett, Rita Elsner, Heloisa Escudero, Emily Fransisco, Adam Griffiths, Key Han, Jeffery Paul Herrity, Tom Hill, Wayson R. Jones, Chandi Kelley, Kelly King, Patrick McDonough, Aaron Mertes, Joseph Orzal, Alma Selimovich
Joan Hisaoka Healing Arts Gallery is proud to present LIFE SOUNDTRACK: PRINCE BOWIE & … Seventeen of Washington DC areas most influential artists have been invited to create a visual remembrance inspired by the recent loss of some of our greatest musical icons and examine the elusive connection between a person and a brilliant stranger.
Throughout time, there has always been a creative connection between artists and musicians, where inspiration and collaboration has flowed between the vocations seamlessly. When an artist leaves this world from one field, the other inevitably shares the pain.
The outpouring of grief from the loss of two of the most influential pioneers in music, Prince and David Bowie, has left a void that will never be filled. The innovation, courage and vulnerability that each musician demonstrated throughout their illustrious careers was ever-present. Contributions to their respective genres of music was palpable, but what set these great icons apart was the ability to transcend musical categories to inspire a larger audience. They were inter-generational, cross-cultural and had the ability to blur gender norms.
Though Prince and Bowie dominated the headlines, the year of 2016 has taken so many other influential musicians as well, such as Merle Haggard, Maurice White, Denise Katrina Matthews (Vanity), Glen Frey and Phife Dawg of Tribe Called Quest, to name a few. This is the reasoning for the ellipsis in the title of the exhibition, to allow the invited artist to tell their personal story and tribute.
These artists will not only celebrate these musical pioneers who transcended their genres, but also explore the ideas of loss and investigate the intimate connection that is made between an artist and a musician who is most likely a stranger. This show will also examine contemporary art-making methods to acknowledge masters in other fields of creativity. This is not to be a simple portrait show of these icons or meditations in purple, but a farther-reaching exploration into personal inspiration.
