Sip Tea with the Artists
Hear the artists' tales, sentiments, feelings, and opinions as they discuss the artwork they made. Among the tea, food, and refreshments, artists will discuss subjects such as creative responsibility, representation, and narrative control via art.
About the Exhibition
JTR Presents is collaborating with the Center for Visual Artists and the African-American Atelier in an exhibition focused on advocating for the Transgender community. JTR Presents "Transparency", a collaborative project using art to elevate the voices, stories, and works of Transgender and Gender-Expansive artists and people. This exhibition displays artworks from the local community and beyond to raise awareness of Trans issues and to center the conversation about representation and it translates to affecting people's realities. The exhibition will be September 1 - 30th at CVA and October 6 - 28th at the African-American Atelier.
More information can be at https://jtrpresents.art/the-transparency-project.Contact Jordan T. Robinson for questions at community@jtrpresents.art or at 914.712.8055
History & Context
The Transparency Project started in 2017 after JTR Presents finished a previous project, "_______hood", which explored identity in different scales. During this time, there were several "red flags" that occurred including the 45th president's executive order to dismiss Trans soldiers from duty and to ban trans civilians from enrollment. To the curator of this project, this seemed to be another case of how the representation of a people can affect their reality through the actions of people in power who perceive them based on what they are represented as.
In this idea of representation and how it affects one's reality, Jordan T. Robinson and Lara Americo explored ways the Arts can be used as a platform for the community to be empowered by telling their story and who they are in their own voice and how the community can support them.
Ways To Participate:
If you are a person who is Transgender, Non-Binary, 2-Spirit, Non-Gender-Conforming, Intersex, Agender, or any other gender-expansive identity, we encourage you to take part in this project through the following options:
Submit artwork into Exhibition - Trans and Gender-Expansive artists will be prioritized.
Set up a time to share your stories - Trans and Gender-Expansive people will be prioritized.
If you are cisgender, or not of the identities aforementioned, you are also welcome to contribute, however, we are prioritizing Gender-Expansive artists and community members. You can also support through donations as we need to raise funds to pay the artists involved in some of the programming that is currently being made around this exhibition.