| OPENS AT THE CARTER March 12–July 9, 2023 |
| From the Curator Each artwork for an art historian is a bit of a web. Just when we think we’ve made up our minds, a new thread emerges, or a new piece of evidence is revealed. Such is the situation with one of our most cherished sculptures at the Carter. John Quincy Adams Ward’s The Freedman (1863) has always struck me as remarkable in that it depicts a formerly enslaved person who seems to have emancipated himself. Walking by The Freedman always made me think how audacious and daring it was for Ward to make this before he even knew who would win the Civil War or what the fate of enslaved people would be. I felt, and still feel, that he was ahead of his time. But the more society has grappled with injustice and violence perpetrated against people of color, the more elusive the sculpture becomes. What does it signal to those who have faced injustice because of the color of their skin? Does the shackle’s presence, though broken, serve as a lasting reminder of the ubiquitous nature of inequity in society? It is my firm belief that history best comes to life in the hands of artists. Contemporary art does not emerge from a vacuum, but the relevance of historical imagery is not always obvious to the viewer. To that end, we invited seven living artists to help enrich the nuances and contradictions inherent in our history, and their resulting works address incarceration, freedom, celebration, surveillance, injustice, and Black excellence with powerful specificity and resonant universality. Emancipation: The Unfinished Project of Liberation started with history as a launching point and emerges as a show of work by some of the most engaging young artists of our time. I hope you’ll join me at the opening. |
| Exhibition Events |
| Educator Workshop: The Project of Liberation Saturday, April 1, 2023 Examine the long legacy of the Civil War with a tour of Emancipation and learn how art can help students shape the future.Homeschool at the Carter: Creating Freedom Wednesday, May 3, 2023 Explore Emancipation and create your own artwork inspired by the works in the exhibition. Artist Talks: Emancipation Saturday, June 10, 2023 Celebrate the exhibition with a series of conversations with some of the artists from Emancipation. Second Thursdays at the Carter: Inspiration & Insight Thursday, April 13, 2023 Discover how contemporary artists find inspiration in Emancipation during an evening of cocktails, conversations, and creativity. Family Workshop: Creating History Saturday, May 6, 2023 Get creative and work together as a family to create a work of art inspired by Emancipation. Bookish: Washington Black Thursday, June 29, 2023 Take a tour of Emancipation and join us for a discussion about Washington Black by Esi Edugyan. |
| Additional events are scheduled throughout the run of the exhibition. For dates, details, and to register visit cartermuseum.org/events. |
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