{"674998":{"#nid":"674998","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Exhibit Review: Bark Rhythms","body":[{"value":"\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003Eby Isabella\u0026nbsp;Tallman-Jones\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThis thoughtfully curated exhibition was brought to life by curators Jill Powers and Lisa Miles\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;North\u0026nbsp;American\u0026nbsp;Hand\u0026nbsp;Papermakers\u0026nbsp;for\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;organization\u2019s\u0026nbsp;Guest\u0026nbsp;Curated\u0026nbsp;Exhibition Triennial.\u0026nbsp;With\u0026nbsp;collaboration\u0026nbsp;between\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;guest\u0026nbsp;curators\u0026nbsp;and\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;Robert\u0026nbsp;C.\u0026nbsp;Williams\u0026nbsp;Museum\u0026nbsp;of Papermaking, the resulting deep dive has produced an insightful perspective on an often-forgotten ancient practice. Bark paper has existed within a centuries-long genealogy of craft in places like Uganda, Indonesia, Mexico, Hawaii, and a variety of Polynesian and Pacific-Islander cultures. Somewhat attributed to the Global South, it is no wonder why this alternative\u0026nbsp;production\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;natural\u0026nbsp;matrix\u0026nbsp;does\u0026nbsp;not\u0026nbsp;exist\u0026nbsp;within\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;Western\u0026nbsp;hegemonic\u0026nbsp;history\u0026nbsp;of writing and visual culture at large.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe\u0026nbsp;exhibit\u2019s\u0026nbsp;contemporary\u0026nbsp;innovations\u0026nbsp;utilize\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;signifiers\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;civilizations\u2019\u0026nbsp;papermaking pasts. Through timeless pattern-making practices and the further development of a shared semiotic\u0026nbsp;language,\u0026nbsp;both\u0026nbsp;representational\u0026nbsp;and\u0026nbsp;abstract;\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;artists\u0026nbsp;transcend\u0026nbsp;temporal\u0026nbsp;obstacles through\u0026nbsp;artistic\u0026nbsp;creation.\u0026nbsp;Repetition\u0026nbsp;and\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;meditative\u0026nbsp;beating\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;pulp\u0026nbsp;and\u0026nbsp;cellulose\u0026nbsp;are\u0026nbsp;central to the ancestral language of symbols and techniques of meaning-making.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESome\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;topics\u0026nbsp;broached\u0026nbsp;by\u0026nbsp;these\u0026nbsp;contemporary\u0026nbsp;interpretations\u0026nbsp;include\u0026nbsp;immigration, tradition, community, and issues of belonging in a post-colonial present. These themes bubble to the surface of Enrique Chagoy\u2019s \u003Cem\u003EIllegal Alien\u2019s Meditations on el Ser y la Nada\u003C\/em\u003E. The accordion-style artist\u0027s book unfolds into a colorful comic-like narrative throughout its ten lithographic prints on handmade Amate (Nahuatl for \u201cbark paper\u201d). The illustrations are stylized, suggesting its inspiration from pre-colonial Nahuatl codices. This reference informs the viewer\u2019s reading, meant to be traditionally read from right to left. The dots and slashes at the corner of each\u0026nbsp;page\u0026nbsp;share\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;number\/date\u0026nbsp;system\u0026nbsp;used\u0026nbsp;by\u0026nbsp;civilizations\u0026nbsp;under\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;Aztec\u0026nbsp;empire.\u0026nbsp;The\u0026nbsp;title page\u0026nbsp;pictures\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;protagonist\u0026nbsp;as\u0026nbsp;an\u0026nbsp;Aztec\u0026nbsp;sculpture\u0026nbsp;head\u0026nbsp;attached\u0026nbsp;to\u0026nbsp;a\u0026nbsp;classicized\u0026nbsp;female\u0026nbsp;body. The head reoccurs in the corner of another page with the subtitled \u201cHern\u00e1n Cort\u00e9s\u201d after the man behind the atrocities of the Spanish Conquest of New Spain. Other similar sculptural elements are littered throughout the book, often written over and struck through by other symbols in a red wash. Additional scenes are composited from comic and mass cultural depictions\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;white\u0026nbsp;people\u0026nbsp;interacting,\u0026nbsp;often\u0026nbsp;derogatorily,\u0026nbsp;with\u0026nbsp;a\u0026nbsp;cast\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;unnamed\u0026nbsp;indigenous\u0026nbsp;and stereotyped characters. These interactions are especially evident on a page with a series of 12 comic vignettes. Some of these vignettes have been altered with superimposed images. The overall effect is reminiscent of the Spanish casta paintings, which promoted a newly invented racial hierarchy to scientifically and culturally justify the systematic extermination of the New World\u2019s inhabitants. The original ephemera from which Chagoya takes inspiration is virtually nonexistent today, though its practices and techniques have miraculously survived generations and centuries after the Spanish Inquisition. Bark paper production and Nahuatl writing practices were effectively banned by the conquistadors\u2013 burned, denigrated, and rewritten histories. The title of the work refers to its contemporary take on the Mexican-American experience and how it might comically parallel a seemingly distant colonial past. Further, the title evokes Jean-Paul Sartre\u2019s \u003Cem\u003EBeing and Nothingness\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/em\u003Eas an acknowledgment of the existentialist center of the\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMexican-American ontological experience. The meditative processes associated with the making of the artist\u0027s book itself are an active forging of a connection to the past and an upholding\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;that\u0026nbsp;legacy,\u0026nbsp;but\u0026nbsp;also\u0026nbsp;a\u0026nbsp;history\u0026nbsp;lesson\u0026nbsp;that\u0026nbsp;might\u0026nbsp;allow\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;viewer\u0026nbsp;to\u0026nbsp;make\u0026nbsp;space\u0026nbsp;for a new reality long silenced.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESeveral works in the exhibition are spiritually oriented such as the Otom\u00ed \u201cSpirit Figures\u201d or the Hawaiian \u003Cem\u003Elananu \u2018u mamao\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/em\u003Eor \u201cOracle Tower\u201d entitled \u003Cem\u003EPa \u2018aikalani\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/em\u003E(Grounded to the Heavens)\u0026nbsp;by\u0026nbsp;Dalani\u0026nbsp;Tanahy.\u0026nbsp;The\u0026nbsp;wispy\u0026nbsp;and\u0026nbsp;ethereal\u0026nbsp;materiality\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;bark\u0026nbsp;paper\u0026nbsp;lends\u0026nbsp;itself\u0026nbsp;well\u0026nbsp;to the\u0026nbsp;art\u0026nbsp;and\u0026nbsp;expression\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;fleeting\u0026nbsp;and\u0026nbsp;translucent\u0026nbsp;light\u0026nbsp;that\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;a\u0026nbsp;specter.\u0026nbsp;The\u0026nbsp;resulting\u0026nbsp;exhibit\u0026nbsp;is\u0026nbsp;a diverse spectrum of these innumerable qualities: delicate and hardened, narrative-driven or abstract, and encaustic, coptic, or chemically treated.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EEcologically, the mutuality of bark paper\u2019s production is clear to see. UNESCO\u2019s 2005 decree of bark cloth as a \u201cMasterpiece of Oral and Intangible Cultural Heritage\u201d is a testament\u0026nbsp;to its reemergence in contemporary artistic practices. Artists across time are called to action, creating a renewed awareness of the need for emphatic preservation of marginalized cultural practices previously destroyed. Artists are reclaiming and preserving marginalized cultural traditions, using sustainable methods to transform terrestrial resources into mediums for memory and ritual. Bark paper isn\u2019t just historical; it\u2019s social, cultural, and political. It has endured\u0026nbsp;colonization,\u0026nbsp;intellectual\u0026nbsp;suppression,\u0026nbsp;and\u0026nbsp;mass\u0026nbsp;re-education\u0026nbsp;efforts\u0026nbsp;throughout\u0026nbsp;history, making its preservation crucial for understanding our collective past.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EBark Rhythms: Contemporary Innovations \u0026amp; Ancestral Traditions\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/em\u003Eserves as a profound testament to the enduring significance of bark paper within global cultural heritage. By bridging past\u0026nbsp;and\u0026nbsp;present,\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;artists\u0026nbsp;not\u0026nbsp;only\u0026nbsp;showcase\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;beauty\u0026nbsp;and\u0026nbsp;versatility\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;this\u0026nbsp;ancient\u0026nbsp;practice but also provoke reflection on its ecological, social, and political implications. As we marvel at the intricate works on display, we are reminded of the resilience of marginalized traditions and the\u0026nbsp;imperative\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;their\u0026nbsp;preservation\u0026nbsp;in\u0026nbsp;shaping\u0026nbsp;a\u0026nbsp;more\u0026nbsp;inclusive\u0026nbsp;and\u0026nbsp;enlightened\u0026nbsp;future.\u0026nbsp;Through the medium of bark paper, we glimpse not only history but also the potential for transformative dialogue and mutual understanding across cultures and generations.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThis thoughtfully curated exhibition was brought to life by curators Jill Powers and Lisa Miles\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;North\u0026nbsp;American\u0026nbsp;Hand\u0026nbsp;Papermakers\u0026nbsp;for\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;organization\u2019s\u0026nbsp;Guest\u0026nbsp;Curated\u0026nbsp;Exhibition Triennial.\u0026nbsp;With\u0026nbsp;collaboration\u0026nbsp;between\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;guest\u0026nbsp;curators\u0026nbsp;and\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;Robert\u0026nbsp;C.\u0026nbsp;Williams\u0026nbsp;Museum\u0026nbsp;of Papermaking, the resulting deep dive has produced an insightful perspective on an often-forgotten ancient practice. Bark paper has existed within a centuries-long genealogy of craft in places like Uganda, Indonesia, Mexico, Hawaii, and a variety of Polynesian and Pacific-Islander cultures. Somewhat attributed to the Global South, it is no wonder why this alternative\u0026nbsp;production\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;natural\u0026nbsp;matrix\u0026nbsp;does\u0026nbsp;not\u0026nbsp;exist\u0026nbsp;within\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;Western\u0026nbsp;hegemonic\u0026nbsp;history\u0026nbsp;of writing and visual culture at large.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Exhibit review and analysis by Isabella Tallman-Jones"}],"uid":"30829","created_gmt":"2024-06-04 18:52:03","changed_gmt":"2024-06-18 15:44:57","author":"Virginia Howell","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2024-06-04T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2024-06-04T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"674204":{"id":"674204","type":"image","title":"RCW Chagoy","body":null,"created":"1718725267","gmt_created":"2024-06-18 15:41:07","changed":"1718725440","gmt_changed":"2024-06-18 15:44:00","alt":"Enrique Chagoy:  \u0022Illegal Alien\u2019s Meditations on el Ser y la Nada\u0022","file":{"fid":"257689","name":"Chagoy 1 small.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/06\/18\/Chagoy%201%20small.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/06\/18\/Chagoy%201%20small.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":2984213,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2024\/06\/18\/Chagoy%201%20small.jpg?itok=DV26knWQ"}}},"media_ids":["674204"],"related_links":[{"url":"https:\/\/paper.gatech.edu","title":"Museum website"},{"url":"https:\/\/art.stanford.edu\/people\/enrique-chagoya","title":"Enrique Chagoya"},{"url":"https:\/\/www.kapahawaii.com\/","title":"Dalani Tanahy"}],"groups":[{"id":"372221","name":"Renewable Bioproducts Institute (RBI)"},{"id":"508641","name":"Robert C. Williams Museum of Papermaking"}],"categories":[{"id":"42921","name":"Exhibitions"},{"id":"42891","name":"Georgia Tech Arts"}],"keywords":[{"id":"188363","name":"rcw-news"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39491","name":"Renewable Bioproducts"}],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EVirginia Howell\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E404-894-5726\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:virginia.howell@rbi.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Evirginia.howell@rbi.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["virginia.howell@rbi.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}