04 Feb 2010

Iniva at Rivington Place presents Progress Reports: art in an era of diversity

Progress Reports: art in an era of diversity
Iniva at Rivington Place, London EC2A 3BA
28 January – 13 March 2010
Admission Free

Exhibiting artists: Oreet Ashery and Larissa Sansour, Sanford Biggers, Michelle Citron, Julie Dash, Leah Gilliam, Amanda Holiday, Naomi Kashiwagi, Radhika Khimji, Tracey Moffatt, Harold Offeh, Hetain Patel, Lisa Reihana, John Sealey, Tejal Shah, Kara Walker

Iniva (Institute of International Visual Arts) presents a dynamic multi-voiced exhibition at Rivington Place selected by curators, artists and filmmakers. Painting, sculpture, graphics and film reflect the times we live in and changes to the social and cultural landscape since Iniva was founded 15 years ago. 16 artists show work in this exhibition which explores interpretations of 'cultural diversity' and contemporary society.

Manick Govinda from Artsadmin, Sally Lai from the Chinese Arts Centre, and artist Zarina Bhimji have selected artists to show work in the exhibition. These include Oreet Ashery and Larissa Sansour whose bold mixture of art, politics, games, sci-fi and storytelling rebels against the stereotypes of the Middle East. Ashery is from Israel and Sansour from Palestine. Artist Sanford Biggers' sculptures seamlessly blend contemporary hip-hop expressions with Eastern Spiritualism, he presents a breakdance floor modelled on a Buddhist mandala.

Filmmaker and scholar Karen Alexander and filmmaker Campbell select screenings by artists such as Kara Walker whose provocative films retell narratives around slavery and domination; Hetain Patel who realigns his body in relationship to nationhood in films like Kanku Ragu, and Harold Offeh with his humorous re-interpretation of Hollywood media representations of the asexual mammy figure.

A lively talks and events programme asks questions around internationalism, cultural hierarchies, participation and politics. Events include 'Global Visions' on 11 February, a discussion looking at what 'international' means in the arts today; chaired by Deborah Cherry, the panelists are Everlyn Nicodemus, Kristian Romare and Pratap Rughani. 'Questionable Times' on 4 March is the re-staging of a popular political BBC TV show where panelists are grilled on issues of cultural diversity in the arts, with Tony Panayiotou from the Arts Council, artists Sonia Boyce and Yara El-Sherbini, and writer Sarat Maharaj.

Next exhibition: Chinese artist Jai Aili shows paintings in his first solo exhibition in Europe, 31 March – 15 May 2010.

www.iniva.org