Leah Modigliani: Washington D.C., 1939; Basel, 1957; Paris, 1958; Berkeley, 1969; Chicago, 1969; London, 1969…

Leah Modigliani: Washington D.C., 1939; Basel, 1957; Paris, 1958; Berkeley, 1969; Chicago, 1969; London, 1969 is a solo exhibition of works by Leah Modigliani reflecting on themes of history, protest and power narrated through a feminist lens. Embedded within a discourse of representation, Modigliani challenges the ways in which political resistance has been disseminated and archived in popular culture. By reconstituting and reimaging moments of activism on white platforms inside the gallery, the artist is both commemorating these moments in history as well as exemplifying a material method for protest. Inevitably, the works also distort the events they make reference to, sometimes reducing them to the level of the commodity, to an easily acquired and consumed surrogate for political action, or into a staged performance-turned sculpture that remains frozen in time and place. However, in each instance, Modigliani has created a restorative gesture to critique the power of the photographic image, the document or the memory of history whose political efficacy remains an open question.

Organized and circulated by the Confederation Centre Art Gallery, Charlottetown, PEI