GROUP EXHIBITION
curated by Lindsay Jarvis

Arsenal Contemporary Art New York is pleased to present Alphabetic Image, a group exhibition consisting of 27 artists and collectives. The show addresses the representation of letters, words, and text through an eclectic range of practices that explore language as a medium. 

There is a rich history of artists experimenting with the dynamic intersection of text and image, perhaps most notably in the 20th century avant-garde movements of Cubism, Dada and Pop Art. Today, graffiti, memes, and commercial signage regularly impact the strategies with which artists employ text. 

With recent social upheavals, we have experienced the prevalence of handmade protest signage in visual culture that has resulted in artists riffing or quoting this imagery. Furthermore, within the context of “post-truth” politics, a number of the artists in the exhibition consider the relationship between conditioning and the subjectivity of perception.   

As we have more time to reflect upon 2020’s activism for racial justice, increased digital communication and the systemic inequalities profoundly highlighted through the pandemic, the artists in the exhibition explore how the social and political landscape is changing. The show’s title, Alphabetic Image, is intended to emphasize the index of ideological positions evident in the artists’ works, which provoke questions about our complicated and uncertain future.