Today is January 6, 2022. 

Americans around my parents’ age remember exactly where they were, what they were doing, and who they were with when they learned Kennedy had been killed.  Americans from my generation (and older) have similar recollections about September 11.  Now, we all have January 6, 2021.  I was completely stressed out, beginning my final semester of graduate school. The first wave of the COVID pandemic had all but botched my thesis research and I was desperately trying to come up with a new concept for the thesis paper that I was supposed to be writing.  I didn’t have class on Wednesday and I expected a full eight hours of banging my head into the wall before heading home to Mel and our new infant.  A few other folks were wandering around the grad studio blocks, but it was mostly quiet, maybe quiet enough to make some progress, even?  There had been plenty of buzz about Trump supporters showing up at the Capitol to protest the certification of Biden’s win.  I was sure there would be a bit of drama, and hopefully, folks wouldn’t get hurt, but this was US Capitol building, what were they really going to do?  Around 2 PM, I started scrolling through Instagram stories to see if anything had gone down. Protestors had overrun the Capitol Police and were breaking into the Capitol of the United States.  

I spent the rest of the day staring at a live news feed and texting my relatives and friends in Washington.

Tonight, on the first anniversary of the insurrection, doors for the Stolen Goods exhibition will first open for public viewing.  This is my first project as a visiting curator at Marketview Arts. The show is comprised of artists invited to participate and others who were selected after answering an open call for works.  Matthew Clay-Robison and I have tried to present a grouping of works that not only reflect on the events of that day, but also on the attitudes, emotions, and narratives that built the foundation for such an event to take place.

The roster of exhibiting artists includes Guggenheim Fellows, visionaries of contemporary art, emerging artists, personal mentors, and friends.  The work includes a broad range of mediums: drawing, painting, collage, sculpture, digital works, recorder performances, and more.  I’m very excited for everyone to see it.

Stolen Goods runs until Wednesday, February 23, 2022.  There will be an exhibition reception on Friday, February 4, 2022.  

A special thank you to Matthew Clay-Robision, James OShea, and all the participating artists.

Exhibiting artists:
Matt Blackwell
Jacob Cullers
Deborah Dancy
Chawky Frenn
Gregory Eltringham
Josephine Hyde
Andrew Ellis Johnson
Juan Juarez
Kate Kretz
Thomas Nazario
Jefferson Pinder
Ivy Rodgers
Justin Ruby
Paul Rucker
Dread Scott
Susanne Slavick
Dillon Samuelson
Joseph Velasquez

Marketview Arts is located at
37 W. Philadelphia Street
York, PA 17401

Hours of operation:
Tuesday | 10 a.m.–5 p.m.

Wednesday | 12–7 p.m.
Thursday | 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
Friday–Saturday | 10 a.m.–9 p.m.
Sunday–Monday | Closed

Web
Instagram