Flight represents the culmination of a year of research, artistic collaborations, and creative interventions into the social construction of race and difference. This project combines education, community partnerships, visual art, and fundraising to expand the practical capacity of art-making into forms of discourse, civic engagement, and empathy building. The exhibit is deeply personal and intentionally socially engaged.
Curated by sheri crider and Traci Quinn, Curator of Education and Public Programs
The exhibition and series of events are partially sponsored by the Right of Return Fellowship which supports formerly incarcerated artists creating original works that can further criminal justice reform in partnership with advocates and organizers.
Mercedez Holtry @ FLIGHT O1 POP UP EVENT Early 2018
FLIGHT 01 Pop up
Community member at fundraising pop up event
Merchandise for fundraising- included work from Jodie Hererra, Kei and Molly Textiles, sheri crider and Mercedes Holtry
The event gave away over 250 free tacos.
Fundraising mobiles created by sheri crider
Original drawing for mobile
American Kestrel bird mobile.
The pop up raised over 1500 for local immigrant advocacy organizations.
Works in progress- over 650 bird mobiles were created for the installation.
Five workshops invited community members to string together bird mobiles while learning about current detention sites. Group conversations strategized creative entrances to empat
Ages of participants ranged from 7 to 83.
Studio production, over 600 birds will be installed for FLIGHT.
A second series of workshops offered system impacted women to create mobiles out of documents from their incarceration.
The women created a mobile to keep and one to fly in the exhibition.
Entrance of FLIGHT installation.
Most everyone who believed in the best of me.
Interactive tablet and projection – A Brief Visual History of the world and your tiny swipe.
Detail of A Brief Visual History of the world and your tiny swipe.
“A Brief Visual History of the world and your tiny swipe”, projected time lapse drawing with viewer interactive tablet.
COEVAL QUIVIRA, Interactive room. L to R Targets to manifest all your fears and desires(facial recognition), Rock, Paper, Scissors-Race, Gender, Class and A few moments of (dis)connection to build on (VR)
Rock, Paper, Scissors-Race, Gender, Class
Detail of hardware installation.
A few moments of (dis)connection to build on (VR)
Detail of interior view of A few moments of (dis)connection to build on (VR)
images: Stefan Batista
Audience in conversation with community participants.
Detail of bird mobiles.
Solo exhibition, FLIGHT
Main projection in FLIGHT. Time lapse video of Cibola Detention Center.
Installation detail.
Installation shown at Eastern State Penitentiary, Philadelphia. This exhibition was in conjunction with the Just Mercy film release.
Installation shown in Chelsea, NY. This exhibition was in conjunction with HBO’s OG original series release.
