Show runs until October 31, 2021
On Friday, September 10, 2021, 5 Points Art Gallery and Studios welcomed the public to attend the opening reception to “Signs O’ The Times,” an ambitious group exhibition tackling the ambiguous, and for some, politically and socially polarizing, topic of gentrification.
“Gentrification,” a result of urban renewal, is a contemporary term for the displacement of racially and economically marginalized populations from their naturalized communities. Residents, seldom included or given timely access to urban and economic development plans, are usually late in identifying the physical and cultural evacuation scheduled for their neighborhoods. Signs O’ The Times clarifies the visible and unveils the inconspicuous signs, dialogues, and other harbingers of encroaching gentrification through bold art compositions.
Inculcating the audience with an eclectic compilation of revisionist signage, original protest posters, graphic arts, photo journalism, experimental film, conceptual sculptures and other artistic approaches, 15 visual artists and one neighborhood association, through their fresh and raw perspectives, lay bare their lived and observed experience with housing displacement.
Contributing artists include: 5 Points Neighborhood Association (“5PNA”), Bryan Mercado, Celeste Contreras, Cristina Ossers, Dameon Ellzey, Damon Joy, Fatima Laster, Haerim Lee, Maddie Mason, Martina Patterson, Marvin Tate, Michael Coppage, Pedro M. Gutierrez, Portia Cobb, Siara Berry, and Trey Miles.
Signs O’ The Times is sure to visually enliven, mentally enlighten, and physically equip those from afflicted, as well as outlying communities, to identify and combat the most subtle and overt enactments of gentrification. These pointedly clever and provoking works are on view until October 31, 2021.