The year’s most anticipated Weatherspoon Art Museum exhibition presents contemporary artists engaging with experiences and understandings of disability.
Some artists in the exhibition “Crip” identify as disabled and some do not, but each has a relationship to at least one identity that is not perceived as normal. Too often, organizers say, such artists are expected to “perform” these identities by making images of themselves. While those images can help diversify the art world, they can also pigeonhole artists, flatten interpretations of their work, and make the distinctions between “normal” and “not-normal” more rigid.
“Crip,” curated by Liza Sylvestre, is co-organized by Krannert Art Museum, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and Gallery 400 at the University of Illinois Chicago. Support was provided by the Presidential Initiative: Expanding the Impact of the Arts and Humanities and by the James and Beth Armsey Fund.
Visual: Christopher Robert Jones, “PureImagination_Sextet,” 2020. Oriented strand board, wood glue, twine, media players, computer speakers, USB drive, and violin/vocal audio track; 72 x 48 x 16 in. Courtesy of the artist. © Christopher Robert Jones
The year’s most anticipated Weatherspoon Art Museum exhibition presents contemporary artists engaging with experiences and understandings of disability.
Some artists in the exhibition “Crip” identify as disabled and some do not, but each has a relationship to at least one identity that is not perceived as normal. Too often, organizers say, such artists are expected to “perform” these identities by making images of themselves. While those images can help diversify the art world, they can also pigeonhole artists, flatten interpretations of their work, and make the distinctions between “normal” and “not-normal” more rigid.
It’s on view now through April 26, 2025.
“Crip,” curated by Liza Sylvestre, is co-organized by Krannert Art Museum, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and Gallery 400 at the University of Illinois Chicago. Support was provided by the Presidential Initiative: Expanding the Impact of the Arts and Humanities and by the James and Beth Armsey Fund.
Visual: Christopher Robert Jones, “PureImagination_Sextet,” 2020. Oriented strand board, wood glue, twine, media players, computer speakers, USB drive, and violin/vocal audio track; 72 x 48 x 16 in. Courtesy of the artist. © Christopher Robert Jones.