Press Release Archive
STATE OF THE UNION
PRESS RELEASE
Gallery Project
215 South Fourth Avenue
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
www.thegalleryproject.com
734-997-7012
STATE OF THE UNION AT GALLERY PROJECT
Gallery Project presents State of the Union, in which Gallery Project Collaborators and guest artists are invited to comment through their work on conditions in the country. The exhibit opens at noon on Wednesday, June 20, and continues through 4pm on Sunday, July 29. The opening reception is Friday, June 22 from 6-9pm.
“The artist, since the beginning of time, has always expressed the aspirations and dreams of his people. Silence the artist and you have silenced the most articulate voice the people have.” (Katharine Hepburn, speaking in support of Henry Wallace who was called by the House Committee on Un-American Activities, May, 1947.)
Is it the responsibility of an artist to take positions and make statements regarding social, political and cultural situations? Or does the artist, by definition, escape the machinations of the contextual milieu, to live sequestered amidst the clarity and purity of aesthetic principal?
Do cultural movements, trends or situations exist whose import is so significant that they, by their definition, require an artist to express a position or response, whether or not that artist usually enters the socio-political arena?
And finally, does a gallery have the responsibility to provide a forum in which opinion and content regarding social and political situations may be addressed, or should a gallery remain neutrally closed to current content and context, merely examining issues of art, its aesthetics, materials, and techniques?
With State of the Union, Gallery Project attempts to responds to these questions by inviting artists to speak their minds.
Gallery Project is a fine art collaborative. Its mission is to provide a venue for contemporary art that is culturally aware, individualistic, courageous, and thought provoking. Artists representing a diverse range of visual arts curate and participate in its nine annual themed exhibits.
Gallery Project is located at 215 South Fourth Avenue in Ann Arbor. Gallery hours are: Tuesday thru Saturday, noon to 9; and Sunday, noon to 4. The gallery is closed on Mondays. For more information, call 734-997-7012 or visit the website at thegalleryproject.com.