Clark creates monuments out of dust, cloth, or a strand of hair to inspire unyielding acts of resistance against unfathomable legacies of subjugation. Her work will be included in the exhibition Past is Present: Black Artists Respond to the Complicated Histories of Slavery, which runs from Sept. 28, 2022, to Jan. 14, 2023.

Support for Clark’s talk is provided by a generous gift from ESL-Spectrum in Indianapolis.

JOIN US IN PERSON

This event is free and open to the public. It will take place from 5:30 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 28, in Eskenazi Hall’s Basile Auditorium. A reception will follow.

Masks are optional on all IU campuses. Go to iu.edu/covid for the most recent COVID-19 updates, policies, and resources.

Visit herrongalleries.org for details on exhibitions, talks, parking, and more.

ATTEND VIRTUALLY

Guests who prefer to attend virtually can do so via Zoom by pre-registering at go.iu.edu/4sK4.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Sonya Clark is an American artist of Afro-Cuban heritage best known for using various materials, including human hair, fabric, and combs, to address race, culture, class, and history. Clark’s work has been exhibited in over 350 museums and galleries in the Americas, Africa, Asia, Europe, and Australia. She has received multiple accolades, including a United States Artists Fellowship, a Pollock-Krasner Foundation Award, an 1858 Prize for Contemporary Southern Art, an ArtPrize Grand Jurors Award, and an Anonymous Was a Woman Award. She has also worked alongside creative individuals at numerous residencies, including the Red Gate Residency in China, the BAU Institute Residency in France, the Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Center Residency in Italy, and the Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship in Washington, D.C., among many others. Clark is a professor of art at Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts.

As an institution of higher education, Indiana University encourages and supports the free and civil exchange of ideas and academic freedom and regularly invites speakers from diverse perspectives to our campuses. Visit freespeech.iu.edu for more information.