Hashimoto Contemporary is pleased to present Killing The Negative Pt. 4, a solo exhibition by Tulsa-based artist Joel Daniel Phillips. The exhibition will be Phillips’ sixth solo presentation at Hashimoto Contemporary, and features a continuation of his ongoing series of Killed Negatives comprised of drawings and paintings made in response to censored government photographs from the Great Depression.
Grappling with race, class, the environment and stratified socio-economic issues, Killing the Negative Pt. 4 is a meditative response to a selection of Government censored photographs commissioned by the Farm Security Administration (FSA) during the Great Depression. Comprised of meticulously rendered charcoal and graphite drawings and oil paintings, the exhibition serves to bring the conversation of truth to the foreground, commenting on the veracity of the historical record. Phillips’ work centers around questions of historical amnesia, and the accuracy of the stories we tell ourselves about our collective pasts.
In addition to the exhibition, Phillips will be debuting his newest publication, Killing The Negative: A Conversation in Art & Verse, by poet Quraysh Ali Lansana and Joel Daniel Phillips. Published by Left Field Books, the hardcover volume features a collaborative art and poetry conversation engaging with the hole-punched (”killed”) negatives of WPA photographers such as Walker Evans, Arthur Rothstein and Ben Shahn. Featured poets include Lansana, former National Poet Laureate Joy Harjo, North Carolina Poet Laureate Jaki Shelton Green and Randall Horton.
Please join the artist and poets for a book launch, signing and discussion on Saturday, October 14th from 3pm to 5pm at P&T Knitwear.
