Makeover: Melania, 2017, Photo of Martha Wilson by Nancy Burson. Photo of Melania Trump courtesy of Reuters Pictures. Compositing artist: Nancy Burson. Photo/text work, 11” x 43.5”. Printing by Hare & Hound Press on Epson Premium Glossy paper. Frame by Charlie Kitchen.
Transmedia Professor and artist Michael Smith is guest curating Artpace’s International Artists-in-Residence exhibition opening Nov. 9 and on view from November 9 – December 31, 2017. The exhibition features new work by Heyd Fontenot, Lili Reynaud-Dewar and Martha Wilson that is rooted in performance.
“Drawing on backgrounds in theater and performance, our fall resident artists are bridging gaps between different modes of creative expression,” said Artpace Executive Director Veronique Le Melle in the official press release. “Guest Curator Michael Smith had a clear vision for how these artists’ work would intersect with one another, and their exhibitions reveal the collaborative spirit we’ve seen throughout their residencies.”
In addition to new work including film, video, and photography from all three artists, Fontenot will activate his exhibition with what he calls an “occupied installation” the evening of the opening. Wilson, a pioneering feminist artist, will present a series of new work including a video portrait of the artist as Melania Trump, an extension of her ongoing portraits of First Ladies. Reynaud-Dewar will unveil the trailer for a new short horror film created in Marfa, Texas about gentrification and the privatization and commodification of art, land, ideas, and freedom.