Prospect Heights

Brooklyn Museum presents ‘Inside Out’

May 6, 2014 Brooklyn Daily Eagle
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In a new exhibit, “Inside Out: Perceptions and Reflections of Self,” at the Brooklyn Museum, 12 artists with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (I/DD), explore the concept of self — both internally and what is projected. This is the ninth ICL artist exhibition on view in the first floor education galleries at the Brooklyn Museum, and it will run through May 18.

Using 3-D wooden boxes as a canvas, the artists offer a glimpse into their personal experiences and perspectives. The artists confront pre-conceived notions and labels that often have little to do with who they are inside. Large scale mixed medium artwork will also be featured. Alongside each piece will be a poem or stanza based on artist interviews to provide a deeper understanding and context of the work and the artists themselves.

For inspiration, Dylan Stanfield, ICL Arts Counselor, and the ICL artists toured “Behind Closed Doors: Art in the Spanish American Home,” an exhibition (9/20/2013–1/12/2014) at the Brooklyn Museum that explored the private lives and decorative arts of Spain’s New World elite. Stanfield explains the spark behind this year’s exhibition theme: “within the collection, there is a travelling chapel decorative object. It represents one thing from the outside, but, when opened, it reveals an inner life. The concept of utilizing an inanimate object to represent two distinct aspects of ourselves — the one we know and the one we need to get past in order for others to truly understand us — was irresistible.”

Stanfield constructed plain wooden boxes that open and close and presented them to the ICL artists to transform into emotional and introspective representations of their inner and outer selves.

The exhibition also will showcase artworks by the ICL artists inspired by internationally renowned, Brooklyn-based artist Wangechi Mutu. Her Brooklyn Museum exhibition (10/11/2013–3/9/2014), “A Fantastic Journey,” created imagery through mixed mediums of painting and collage. Inspired by her spirit and technique, ICL artists are creating large canvases to capture the spirit of their inner lives.

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