Denise Miller, Mixed Media
Oct 2006 to Nov 2006, Downtown Kalamazoo
*”Each of These Legs Is A Road”*
The philosophy that inspired this exhibit is twofold: art is simultaneously an act of liberation and an act of healing. Thus, art is an ideal method by which to address a societal schism that erupts when a person or persons liberation is interrupted and/or denied. Therefore, the pieces in Each of These Legs is a Road reflect, through words and art, the stories of African Americans who escaped enslavement by walking, rowing, or riding from the South to Michigan and what they hoped was freedom. Through visual art and writing, I attempt to pinpoint those moments of resolution and resistance that enslaved and formerly enslaved African Americans experienced as they journeyed. The art and writing is also an attempt to give contemporary voice to these stories through the visual combination of historical documents, persona poetry, found objects and visual art. In this exhibit, I seek to “contemporize” the historical idea of broadsides and runaway advertisements through the sometimes rough and organic ways in which I display the work. Finally, I hope this exhibit becomes a conversation between past and present and between enslavement and freedom.
Denise Miller, artist and poet 1249 Portage, 1A Kalamazoo, MI 49001 www.thisisfire.com 269.344.6659
Artist Reception: Friday, October 6, 2006 Art Hop from 5pm-9pm at the Downtown Location: 315 E. Water St., Kalamazoo, MI 49007
