Illuminating the webs of human perception for Civil Justice

November 10, 2023 - February 16, 2024

Public Community Celebration and Reception: Friday, November 10th from 6-8pm

Curated by, Yasamin Safarzadeh

Phaneron is the entire way in which we experience; through any sense or feeling. In the upcoming exhibition, Kimball Jenkins has been approached by the legal community to illuminate through art, the lived human experiences that call for civil justice. To approach such a broad task in an ethical and informed way, curators selected artists whose lived experiences represent communities who have utilized the law in order to convince others that there have been inequities in accessing human rights and autonomy. The timelines of these journeys, and the infinitesimal phaneron which makes up the webbing of human perception, is on display. The exhibition is produced by Kimball Jenkins, and the generous leadership in supporting arts and cultural experiences with sponsorship from Rath, Young and Pignatelli.

The exhibition highlights the great work of George C. Longfish, who has just finished an incredible painting of James Thorpe, one of America and Sac and Fox Nation’s greatest olympians. Not only will this painting be onsite, but the galleries at Kimball Jenkins will host several other Longfish works which have been exhibited at institutions such as the Smithsonian in Washington DC, and the Hood Museum at Dartmouth. George Longfish has been integral in establishing Native art history and practice at UC Davis, and across the nation.

Other artists featured include the conceptual work of Michelle Peterson, amplifying the uncompensated labor in motherhood, and the international databases she has collected to connect mother artists. Waypoint Youth Resource Center will lend collage tapestries created over the past year, by brilliant young people who are under-resourced in central New Hampshire. Amber Nicole Cannan has completed a cyanotype quilt in collaboration with the advocacy group for disability justice, ABLE NH, during their Soaring to the Stars event. This relic will be on display as part of the exhibition and related programming.

To complement the visual arts, Phaneron, will feature an audio installation by the West High School Ethics Team. These young adults wrestled with a myriad of challenging moral scenarios, facing other high school teams who often came from schools and environments that are typically better resourced. A store on the second floor of the Jill C. Willson Gallery will feature the work of Casey Fitzgerald, who demonstrates an unapologetic breadth of accessible art celebrating a diversity of beauty in the human body.

The reception will be on Friday November 10th from 6-8pm, and will feature live music from the band, Scrimmy The Dirthag. Receptions are free community events and celebrate the exhibition and artists involved. It is a catalyst of joy and conversation around the theme of the exhibition, and in celebration of the arts as an important vehicle of communication and expression.

This exhibition is an exciting double feature, with the annual production of SALON, curated in 2023 by Randall Nielsen of Queerlective.This floor-to-ceiling community group show, has become one of the largest art parties of the year, showcasing work by hundreds of local artists. It is an excellent opportunity to support the cultural scene in New Hampshire and purchase unique gifts for the holidays.