COLOR, CULTURE, COMPLEXITY
November 23, 2002, through February 16, 2003

Atlanta, Georgia -- The Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia (MOCA GA) announces its upcoming exhibition: Color, Culture, Complexity. The Exhibit opens on November 23, 2002, and remains on view through February 16, 2003. The exhibit and the accompanying catalog feature the work of 18 national artists examining aspects of race. Opening day is November 23 from 10 – 5. The event is free and open to the public.

The show is co-curated by Ed Spriggs and Dan Talley. Spriggs was one of the first directors of the Studio Museum in Harlem, and is the recently retired, long-time Director of the Hammonds House Galleries in Atlanta. Talley was the former gallery director of Nexus Contemporary Art Center in Atlanta (now the Atlanta Contemporary Art Center) and is currently the director of the Sharadin Art Gallery at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania.

The exhibition includes work by Amalia Amaki, Perry Bard, Bradley Bullock, Cybele Clark-Mendes, Marcia R. Cohen, William Christenberry, Harry H. DeLorme, Jr., Mark Stevne Greenfield, Linda Hesh, Sally Grizzell Larsson, Joe Lewis, Billie Grace Lynn, Stephen Marc, Adia Millet, James A. Rose, Jr., Clarissah Sligh, Robert B. Stewart and Lisa McGaughey Tuttle. The exhibition is dedicated to the memory of John Riddle.

Primarily of African and European decent, the artists work in a variety of mediums and styles to grapple with the charged issues that have shaped racial discourse in this country, especially in the last half of the 20th century. The exhibition is intentionally eclectic, drawing its strength not from a single curatorial premise that is illustrated and reiterated by a number of artists, but by a broad cultural question that is answered by a sampling of artists through a wide range of responses. In a sense, the exhibition parallels what might be the most important aspect of race relations in America: the power of the individual voice presenting a persuasive case. The show becomes a snapshot of the thinking and expressions of doubt and hope that are so pervasive at the beginning of this new century. The snapshot casts an eye back to some of the horrendous assumptions and injustices that have marked racial struggle during our country’s history and it looks forward with mixed expectations toward the prospect of improved understanding (most optimistically expressed by artists who desire to move beyond established categories and construct new paradigms).

The mission of the Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia is to collect and archive significant works of the artists living in Georgia. MOCA GA seeks to make contemporary visual art more accessible by connecting local, living artists with diverse audiences in order to promote the understanding and appreciation of the visual arts in our state. The museum’s permanent collection contains more than 260 works of art by 115 artists who were born or spent a significant portion of their careers working in Georgia. The collection encompasses a wide range of media, including paintings, prints, drawings, sculptures, installation art and photographs.

MOCA GA is located at 1447 Peachtree Street, two blocks north of the High Museum of Art in Midtown Atlanta. Museum hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 am until 5 pm, Sunday 12 noon – 5 pm. Admission is free. For more information, contact Amy Parry, 404/881-1109, info@mocaga.org.