An Artsy top-ten pick for spring's must-see international exhibitions.
An Artnet recommended essential spring exhibition to see in New York.
"What's it Like to Inhabit Saya Woolfalk's World of Plant-Human Hybrids?"— Read The New York Times profile of Saya Woolfalk.
The first retrospective of the artist’s two decades of world-building installations, the exhibition showcases Woolfalk’s ambitious fictional narrative of an imagined race of women known as “Empathics.” Woolfalk has created for the Empathics’ their own distinctive visual imagery, symbolism, and folklore, which reflect her investigations of African, African American, Japanese, European, and Brazilian art, craft, and storytelling. In this parable told through garment-based sculptures, video, paintings, works on paper, and performances, cultures mix, clash, and are ultimately transformed through shared understanding.
Enter the Empathic Universe
Listen to Utopia Within, a captivating audio drama that takes you through the exhibition. Available for free on the Bloomberg Connects arts and culture app. Look for the QR codes throughout the exhibition to begin the performance or click this link.
Gallery Performances
Alvin Ailey-Fordham BFA in dance program will present gallery performances created in collaboration with Saya Woolfalk:
Thursday, June 19 at 7 pm
Thursday, July 17 at 7 pm
Sunday, September 7 at 4 pm
Preview the Exhibition
Generous funding was received by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature and supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
The gift supporting the exhibition's dance performances is made in honor of Kali Marie Oliver.
Additional support for the exhibition was provided by The Blue Rider Group at Morgan Stanley.
A lavishly illustrated survey of two decades of Woolfalk’s groundbreaking work.
