May 1 – 31
Reception and Panel Discussion featuring Artists and Community Members: Friday, May 6 @ 5-9pm
Artist talk: 6pm
Panel discussion: 7pm
Artists: Sean G. Clark, Kate Forer, Mallory Shotwell, Olga Brindar, Jennifer Pappas, Nibiiwakamigkwe, Beth Thelke, Jamie Jacobson, Genevieve Stulgis, Anwar Floyd-Pruitt, ZIPZAP, Matthew Troyer, Niamh Swanton, Gabrielle Javier Cerulli, Palma Maya-Johnson, Victoria Charleson, and Kel Mur
Location: The Pyle Center, 3rd Floor, 702 Langdon St, Madison, WI
Collateral Damage, curated by artists Kel Mur and Victora Charleson was born out of Charleson’s studio practice and is named after her series of degraded polaroid film pieces. Charleson has suffered from mental illness most of her life, witnessing first-hand how pervasive the stigma associated with it is in our culture. She now seizes any opportunity to speak out about her diagnosis and struggles to educate the uninformed. Last year Charleson was surprised to find that people who had never suffered from mental health issues were experiencing the symptoms that she and other mentally ill people experience every day. She watched in amazement as depression and anxiety spurred by the pandemic became an open dialogue, both on social media and in the news. The pandemic has broken down barriers that in the past made acknowledging a problem taboo. At this critical juncture, when we have all experienced some level of isolation and the inability to control our own worlds, Collateral Damage seeks to harness the momentum to continue the conversation, with the aim of destigmatizing mental illness. This exhibition aims to destigmatize mental illness through open discussion and genuine representation.