March 18 – April 30, 2016
Reception Friday, March 18, from 7–9pm
Roundtable/Panel: Saturday, April 23, 2pm
Open Engagement/Advantage of Disadvantage: Friday, April 29

Black & White Projects, 2830 20th Street, No.105, San Francisco

Black & White Projects (formerly ASC Projects) is pleased to present Issued ID: Minority as Brand, with works by Craig Calderwood, Chris Evans, Xandra Ibarra, Channing Morgan, Tim Roseborough, and Related Tactics (Michele Carlson, Weston Teruya, and Nathan Watson) showcased in the exhibition and through multiple events, publications, and panel discussions. The exhibition will be on view from March 18 to April 30, 2016. The reception on Friday, March 18, from 7 to 9pm, includes a live performance and an abundance of artists from across the Bay Area.

Minority as Brand discusses the problematic positions and economies of being a minority (race, gender, class) in the art world. The Minority Artist, perpetually forced to pander or advocate, has the expectation of being “type-cast”, fetishized, and pigeon-holed. And chances are, a qualifier will be added to your talent: woman artist, black performer, queer writer. The minority brand is a double-edged sword — the fetishization affords more opportunity to be hired or included in shows, but usually only as that identity/brand. And what if you are a minority artist who does not create work about your minority-hood?

Minority as Brand is the third installment of Issued ID, an ongoing series of exhibitions, writing, conversations, and events unpacking the impositions of identity. “Issued ID” references the government-issued identification cards that define an individual by seemingly simple surface traits—age, race, gender, height—but is also a play on words, reflecting the many “issues” brought up by being forced to define a person in glib terms and the complexities of an identity that does not fall into a single check-box. The project was launched in 2013 with a selection of video works that brought out the similarities in language around being mixed-race and transgender. 2014 hosted Nigger/Queer/Cunt: an exhibition about three difficult words exploring three words with a complex history of usage and reclamation. Curated and collected by Rhiannon Evans MacFadyen, Issued ID offers a common thread of dialogue about the struggle for definition when you’re not easily defined.

Support for Issued ID: Minority as Brand is provided in part by Southern Exposure’s Alternative Exposure Grant Program

About Black & White Projects:

Black & White Projects (formerly ASC projects) promotes and exhibits artists pushing boundaries of scope, scale, medium, venue, and dialogue, and offers programming to facilitate conversation, professional enrichment, and collaborative projects. We are located at 2830 20th Street, No. 105, in San Francisco’s Mission District. We are open Thursdays and Fridays and readily by appointment. For more information, please email asc@asimplecollective.com

October 24 – November 21, 2014
Reception and Performance Friday, November 14, 7-9pm

Works by Craig Calderwood, Rodney Ewing, Geri Montano, Anthony Julius Williams, Jason Wyman, and others.

Tim Roseborough

Craig Calderwood

Geri Montano

EVNS

Jason Wyman

Jason Wyman

Rodney Ewing

Rodney Ewing (detail)

Anthony Julius Williams (performance)

Nigger, Queer, Cunt… These three words have a complex history where usage, meaning, and acceptance have morphed over time. Each word has been a threat and a term of endearment, has polarized the community it references, and has been claimed or reclaimed with varying degrees of success. Each can be used by some with ease and by others with visceral discomfort.

[ download exhibition brochure ]

Nigger / Queer / Cunt (N/Q/C) is a group exhibition exploring and unpacking the usage, history, and weight of these words. How they are explored is opened to interpretation and discussion by each of the artists as they’ve been commissioned to create work for the show with pen, brush, body, and word, and an accompanying publication offers further contemplation by the artists and curator.

Join us for an artist reception and a special performance by Anthony Julius Williams on Friday, November 14, 7-9pm.

N/Q/C is a continuation of Issued ID, an ongoing series of exhibitions, writing, conversations, and events unpacking the impositions of identity.

“Issued ID” references the government-issued identification cards that define an individual by seemingly simple surface traits—age, race, gender, height—but is also a play on words, reflecting the many “issues” brought up by being forced to define a person in glib terms and the complexities of an identity that does not fall into a single check-box.

The project was launched in 2013 with the eponymous exhibition at ASC Projects. Curated and collected by Rhiannon Evans MacFadyen, Issued ID offers a common thread of dialogue about the struggle for definition when you’re not easily defined.

For more information on N/Q/C and artists, visit ascprojects.org or contact Rhiannon MacFadyen at (415) 786-1351 or asc@asimplecollective.com

ASC Projects is located at 3150 18th Street #104 (Entrance Treat Avenue) in San Francisco’s Mission District /// Open Tuesdays and Thursdays noon-5pm, and by appointment.

From the N/Q/C reception and talk

From the N/Q/C reception and talk

SF Weekly