Intelligence Countered, an exhibition of work by Justin Brown, opens February 12, 2020, at Re:Public, a collaborative space by Hoy Polloy and I/C located at 2301 East 10th Street.
Intelligence Countered features a selection of work by Justin Brown from a complete series of surveilled American citizens from 1898 to contemporary times. Brown’s work illustrates that information (or as the show’s title suggests, intelligence) while benign in its resting state, can be weaponized. He focuses on the impact of information misuse upon individuals and African American organizations. “My work shows the results of decades of control and oppression, directed with cruel precision ... view more »
Intelligence Countered features a selection of work by Justin Brown from a complete series of surveilled American citizens from 1898 to contemporary times. Brown’s work illustrates that information (or as the show’s title suggests, intelligence) while benign in its resting state, can be weaponized. He focuses on the impact of information misuse upon individuals and African American organizations. “My work shows the results of decades of control and oppression, directed with cruel precision on the bodies and psyches of black Americans,” Brown explains.
Primarily working as a painter, Brown employs a mixed media approach in Intelligence Countered. He incorporates elements of collage, graffiti, and installation, to convey immediacy and tactility in his exploration of a vantage point he calls “Afroactuary”. Brown describes Afroactuary as “a demythologizing and unmediated observation of the African American experience, a critique of social structures and engineering throughout history.”
This exhibition also celebrates the unique partnership between I/C and Hoy Polloy with the launch of Re:Public. The collaborative space located at 2301 East 10th Street is part of the 10 East Arts corridor. The space is not a permanent location for either group, but rather a place for the two organizations to work collaboratively to facilitate free, year-round, community-based programming, including regular exhibitions as well as an exterior art series.
Support for Re:Public and related programming was made possible by a grant awarded to John Boner Neighborhood Centers from the Lilly Endowment Inc. through their Strengthening Indianapolis Through Arts and Cultural Innovation initiative.
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