Identitas
March 28 - May 10, 2025
Reception for the Artists: Friday, March 28, 6-8PM
Tracey Morgan Gallery is pleased to present the group exhibition Identitas, with work by Erika Diamond, Marcus Dunn, vanessa german, Luis Alvaro Sahagun, Daniel Simone, & Liz Trader Williams. A reception for the Artists will be held on Friday, March 28 from 6-8PM.
The works in Identitas examine culture & heritage through personal narratives, reflecting each included artist’s distinctly unique perspective on self and experience. Paradoxically, the word “identity” comes from the Latin “identitas” meaning “sameness,” a profound reminder that at our core we are more similar than divergent.
Recent attacks on diversity, immigration, the LGBTQ+ community, and basic human rights through the rapid-fire bombardment of executive orders over the past months have left so many of us feeling powerless and overwhelmed. It has left many artists fearing for their safety, forced into modes of self-protection instead of self-expression. While art at its best rarely offers answers, the selection of works on view here serves as a reminder that ultimately, we can find the deepest expression of unity through celebrating individuality.
About the Artists:
Erika Diamond is a textile-focused artist, curator, and educator whose work is influenced by dance, costume, materiality, and the politics of queer safety and visibility. Marcus Dunn’s work consists of small- and large-scale paintings concerning memory and cultural identity, He descends from Tuscarora and Pee Dee tribal heritage. vanessa german’s practice proposes new models for social healing, utilizing creativity and tenderness as vital forces to reckon with the historical and ongoing catastrophes of structural racism, white supremacy, heteropatriarchy, resource extraction, and misogynoir. Born in Guadalajara, Jalisco, México, and raised in Chicago’s Southland, Luis Alvaro Sahagún’s practice is grounded in curanderismo, the traditional healing practices of Latin America. His work reimagines Mexica and Yucatec Maya rituals within contemporary art. His work “Limpia No. 3: Jose Luis ‘Don Chepe’ Sahagun Sotelo” (2022) included in this exhibition is a portrait of his father. Daniel Simone (it/they/he) is a transgender “alternative” “printmaker” based in Waynesville and Cullowhee, North Carolina.Their works focuses on transgender identity and queer life through everyday waste; their practice is almost entirely cyclical and revolves around utilizing refuse as a means of documenting the self. Liz Trader Williams’ work included here is both an intimate exploration and a broader commentary on the scrutiny, legislation, and emotional erosion that marginalized identities endure.