The Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art Announces La Vaughn Belle: When the Land Meets the Body

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The Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art at the College of Charleston School of the Arts has announced When the Land Meets the Body by renowned artist La Vaughn Belle, on display beginning August 25 until December 9.

In this exhibition, multidisciplinary artist La Vaughn Belle seeks to explore the relationship of history, land, and the bodies between them, and considers that who we are is a product of historical processes that are often represented in the landscape. When the Land Meets the Body will present a selection of existing and new works inspired by the Lowcountry landscape.

This work includes Belle’s How to Imagine the Tropicalia as Monumental which features
large-scale paintings that piece together cut, torn, and burned paper to create cartographies of shifting landscapes and seascapes, as well as a new video installation in which Belle explores the history of the marshes and swamps of Charleston, and how they have been impacted by labor of the enslaved and their attempts at freedom. Additionally, Belle will present new sculptural works inspired by her series For Those of Us Who Live At The Shoreline. The figural sculptures will meditate on the body’s relationship with landscape and memory as part of a dynamic ecosystem that can both harm and protect. Lastly, her Swarm series will display a physical intervention of cuts and burns in reproductions of colonial imagery that seek to emphasize the Black bodies captured in the photographs, and transform the violence endemic in them.

Borrowing from elements of architecture, history, and archeology, Belle, who is currently based in the U.S. Virgin Islands, creates narratives that challenge colonial hierarchies and invisibility through her artistic practices including painting, photography, video and more. She has exhibited her work in many notable institutions across the globe including the National Photography Museum and the Vestsjælland Museum in Denmark. She is the co-creator of I Am Queen Mary, the groundbreaking monument located in Copenhagen, which was featured in over 100 media outlets including The New York Times, Politiken, VICE, BBC Radio and Le Monde.

For more information on upcoming events, tours and memberships, please visit halsey.cofc.edu.

ABOUT THE HALSEY INSTITUTE OF CONTEMPORARY ART
The Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art at the College of Charleston provides a
multidisciplinary laboratory for the production, presentation, interpretation, and dissemination of ideas by innovative visual artists from around the world. As a non-collecting museum, we create meaningful interactions between adventurous artists and diverse communities within a context that emphasizes the historical, social, and cultural importance of the art of our time.

Location: The Marion and Wayland H. Cato Jr. Center for the Arts, College of Charleston
161 Calhoun Street, 1st Floor (corner of St. Philip & Calhoun Streets), Charleston, SC 29401

Parking: Available at metered spaces on surrounding streets and in the St. Philip and George Street Garages.

Gallery hours: 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM on Monday through Saturday and 11:00 AM – 7:00 PM on Thursdays. The galleries are closed on Sundays. FREE ADMISSION and OPEN to the public.

Tours: Free guided group tours are offered through the Halsey Institute’s Looking to See
program. Email halseyTOURS@cofc.edu for inquiries. Free, staff-led guided tours are available at 2:00 PM every Saturday during exhibitions, unless superseded by a program.