Poster design by Shepard Fairey
Asheville Art Museum presents Hear Our Voice, a selection of posters that explores the potential of visual art to empower people, artists and communities and to promote dialogue. The works, on view through July 16, are organized by The Amplifier Foundation, a visual media experiment that accepts submissions for artwork in response to current topics and organized actions.
“These works were submitted by artists and presented as free, downloadable posters for The Women’s March that took place on January 21,” says Lola Clairmont, curatorial assistant for the museum. “The Amplifier Foundation saw the overwhelming artistic talent in the submissions and made them available for an exhibition.”
Individual works by more than 50 artists, including selections from Jessica Sabogal’s Better Than Perfect, a series honoring women and the female body, and Shepard Fairey’s protest series We the People, are featured in the exhibit. Sabogal, a first-generation Colombian-American muralist, is the first female artist commissioned to paint murals at Facebook Headquarters in Menlo Park, CA, and her time-lapse tribute to the Egyptian revolution was featured on the front page of CNN.com in 2011. Fairey, a street artist, graphic designer, activist and illustrator, became well known for his Barack Obama Hope poster during the 2008 election. His work is displayed in collections worldwide, including the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, and London’s Victoria and Albert Museum.
An opening reception for Hear Our Voice will be held on Friday, June 2, from 5–8 p.m., in conjunction with the Downtown Asheville Art District’s First Friday Art Walk. Light snacks and beverages will be available and Moving Voices: A Multimedia Movement Performance will begin at 6:30 p.m. The performance, directed by choreographer Kathleen Meyers Leiner and brought to life by guest dancers, is a response to the exhibit and an exploration of voice as expressed through movement.
“Significant events in history inspire creative activity, and artists play an important role in visually defining these key moments,” says Clairmont. “The works in this exhibition exemplify how artists communicate and share messages that are important to them and in turn provide the public with tools for communication.”
Asheville Art Museum On the Slope is located at 175 Biltmore Avenue. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday and 1–5 p.m. on Sunday. Admission at this location is free. Learn more at ashevilleart.org.
