Our society has a difficult time talking about and processing grief. The fast pace of the news-cycle, the distractions of social media, and the isolation brought about by the most recent COVID-19 pandemic have only exacerbated this problem.
The works in this exhibition were chosen not only because they were all responses to the AIDS pandemic in the United States in the 1980s and 1990s, but because each one contains an underlying desire to bring people together to communally process grief and loss. Felix González-Torres' Untitled (L.A.) generously invites the audience to take a piece of the green candy from a pile on the floor as a metaphor not only for the deterioration of the body with illness, but also as a celebration of the sweet memories that our loved ones leave behind. Haring's Inflatable Baby, made in the face of the extreme loss of life in New York City due to the AIDS pandemic, celebrates the innocence and creativity found at the core of all humans. His Pop Shop, where works like the Inflatable Baby could be purchased for an affordable price, reflects his desire to make his affirming art available to all. The AIDS Memorial Quilt, conceived in 1985 by activist Cleve Jones, invites anyone to submit a quilt panel memorializing someone they have lost to AIDS. Considered the largest community art project in the world, it has provided a space for so many to grieve and celebrate their loved ones, many of whom were denied the basic right of a funeral because of fear and prejudice.
In addition to enjoying the artworks on view within the atrium of the library, we invite you to further engage with the theme of grief and celebration through making your own memorializing quilt panel at our MakerSpace, set up on the Collaborative Learning Space, just south of the main entrance. We also welcome you to participate in Emma Landwerlen's installation After Wind Phone in the main entrance to the library, where a phone is provided for you to speak with lost loved ones in a private booth.
Butler University Libraries strive to curate exhibitions and manage collections with cultural sensitivity.
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