Galerie Barbara Thumm \ Allied with Power: African and African Diaspora Art from the Jorge M. Pérez Collection

Group show including María Magdalena Campos-PonsAllied with Power: African and African Diaspora Art from the Jorge M. Pérez Collection07.11.2020 - 06.02.2022

María Magdalena Campos-Pons, *1959 in Matanzas, Cuba,
lives and works in Nashville, Tennessee

Installation view: Allied with Power: African and African Diaspora Art from the Jorge M. Pérez Collection, Pérez Art Museum Miami, 2020–22. Photo: Oriol Tarridas

 

Addressing themes of identity, colonialism, spirituality, everyday life, and abstraction, the exhibition highlights artists whose works embody the vast complexities of the contemporary moment. Collapsing national borders, the artists in the exhibition ally with power, and with each other, embodying a kaleidoscope of voices that declare their artistic authority. Exhibition highlights include artists such as Stanley Whitney , recognized for his stacked and grid compositions of saturated colors, and Zanele Muholi , represented by two large-scale self-portraits that assert the power and beauty of the artist’s skin and gender. Allied with Power provides a conceptual framework through which we understand the legacy and prowess of artists of color in the world.

“Mr. Pérez’s recent acquisitions showcase the breadth, sophistication, and incredible tenacity of African and contemporary African diaspora artists. The exhibition is a once in a lifetime opportunity to see the connections between Black artists from the US, Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean, alongside African artists—all asserting their power to be seen, recognized and critically acclaimed. Considering the times that we are living today, this exhibition is a breath of confidence and strength,” said PAMM Curator María Elena Ortiz.

The exhibition includes works by artists Igshaan Adams, Juan Carlos Alom, Firelei Báez, María Magdalena Campos-Pons, Kudzanai Chiurai, Jonathas de Andrade, Edouard Duval-Carrié, Tomás Esson, Genevieve Gaignard, Sam Gilliam, David Goldblatt, Sonia Gomes, Nicholas Hlobo, Pieter Hugo, Kudzanai-Violet Hwami, Rashid Johnson, Isaac Julien, Kiluanji Kia Henda, David Koloane, Guido Llinás, Arjan Martins, Misheck Masamvu, Manuel Mendive, Zanele Muholi, Odili Donald Odita, Naudline Pierre, Robin Rhode, Deborah Roberts, Chéri Samba, Yinka Shonibare, Elias Sime, Pascale Marthine Tayou, Mickalene Thomas, Guy Tillim, Kara Walker, Stanley Whitney, Sue Williamson , and Portia Zvavahera. Though a number of Allied with Power artists have shown at the museum before, several are exhibiting at PAMM for the first time, including Zanele Muholi, Sonia Gomes, Jonathas de Andrade, Kiluanji Kia Henda, Chéri Samba, Nicholas Hlobo, and Genevieve Gaignard.