Art Exhibit at Johnson State College Examines Race in America

November 2, 2016

“Awaken,” a collaborative installation about race in America, is now being installed in the Julian Scott Memorial Gallery at Johnson State College and is open to visitors. The completed exhibit will be displayed Nov. 14-20.

A reception and talk by artist and JSC alumna Sabrina Leonard, free and open to the public, will be 3-5:30 p.m. Nov. 14 at the gallery. Leonard, of Jericho, earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2015.

Leonard is creating the piece, which is now on view as it progresses, with students, faculty and community members, who discuss racial issues as they work together. As a first step, the gallery walls were painted black. The installation will include digital projection, paint, pillow cases, black dye, thread and sound.

“Our goal is to work together to create a memorial for those killed recently by police but includes all the black lives oppressed and terrorized by slavery, Jim Crow segregation, lynching, mass incarceration and systemic racism,” reads a statement about the exhibit. “By memorializing, we acknowledge, remember and honor. Through this collective work we ask ourselves: How does race affect us in America? How does race affect us while living in Vermont? What has racism cost us all? How do we contribute and perpetuate systemic racism? We aim to internalize these questions and change the country by changing ourselves.”

Gallery hours are 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturdays. For more information, visit jsc.edu/Dibden or call 635-1469.