As a resident artist at the Lauderhill Arts Center, I have the opportunity to curate exhibitions in the gallery space. My month is this March. I have known for months that I had this time to create an exhibition. I was not able to come up with a new project and work with the limited resources that I have. I dreaded moving forward.
I was not aware that I have been creating the content for this show all along. It took a year and had various collaborators. I concept for the show in March came to me early Saturday morning. What if I stopped reaching so far outside of me and work with what I have been dealing with the past year: Rejection. Yes, Rejection with the capital R. 2013 marked the year of rejection for me, save getting representation and being accepted into a workshop, I received email after email denying inclusion of grants, residencies, and exhibition opportunities.
When thinking about the last year, although I have been looking for spaces to share the work in various spaces and creating the work in the studio, the work never left the studio. The work in the studio is a reminder of ideas not exposed, stored small secure space, away from dialogue.
This show is about reveling this part of my life as an artist. This is another way to connect with my audience. This is a first for me in reveling the failures. More than just the private failures one experiences when creating art. These are more public failures since there are other parties involved. Those who knew the outcome before I did. The strangers that held a possible future experience for me. My secret collaborators.
The gallery walls will be covered in the disappointment, in the form of rejection letters. My studio will be filled with the work that was denied, hoarded unintentionally.
This show will also include a performance. I am thinking about live-streaming the performance. The performance is tentatively scheduled for March 22, 2014.
I am collecting addresses to another collaborative piece to included in the show. If you are interested in participating, email your mailing address to me: artist@cmcfarlaneart.com.