On Thursday, Feb. 6 at 4:30 p.m. in the Wriston Auditorium, Lawrence held a talk, “Queer and Trans Abstractions in Contemporary Art,” with Lex Morgan Lancaster, professor of history and theory of art in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Science at The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art. They are also the author of “Dragging Away: Queer Abstractions in Contemporary Art,” where they speak about “the formal and material innovations of contemporary queer and feminist artists, showing how they use abstraction as a queering tactic for social and political ends,” as put in the book’s description. One of Lancaster’s main goals in their book as well as in the talk was to try to move away from abstractions in queer art always being expected to reduce back to a bodily form or figure. In doing so, Lancaster was able to explore how works represent queerness without including direct representations of bodies. Lancaster described abstractions as being considered “a major force” in queer and trans art practices, as artists are utilizing abstract formal and material strategies rather than straightforward representations of identity. They explained that queer art has long been motivated by issues of visibility.
While Lancaster discussed several works throughout their talk, one of my favorites was “Between Starshine and Clay” by Kiyan Williams. Made to be a visceral multi-sensory experience, the exhibit is held in a small room enveloped by a fiery, ambient orange light that showcases a floor covered completely in soil, while in the middle hang fragmented shapes of hands and parts of a figure as well as debris made out of sandstone and other earthly materials. The earth material fragments that are suspended in the air contain soil that Williams excavated from sites where ships carrying enslaved Africans first landed in the United States, Lancaster shared, going on to say that Williams has explained that soil contains historical memories of violence and trauma while it is also simultaneously the basis for new life. Though such experimental and abstracted art is sure to take on different interpretations, Lancaster interpreted Williams’ showcase to materialize the sense of a body that cannot be held captive.
The work’s title is inspired by a line from Lucille Clifton’s poem “won’t you celebrate with me.” As you enter the exhibit, a recording of Clifton reading the poem plays. We listened to Clifton’s reading in the auditorium, and imagining entering this room with it sounding gave me goosebumps on my arms. The final lines echoed as Clifton slowly finished with “Come celebrate with me that every day something has tried to kill me and has failed.”
Lancaster went on to describe and analyze several other works, such as Angela Hennessy’s “Black Rainbow” and Young Joon Kwak’s “Hermaphroditus’s Reveal.” As a non-art student, I found it incredibly interesting to look at and hear about works I was unfamiliar with, especially through such an interesting lens as understanding the queerness in abstractions. However, I also found it difficult to keep up with all of the jargon that was being used. In Fall Term 2024, I took Introduction to Art History, where I learned about basic concepts like abstractions and composition. Without the experience of having taken that course, I know that I would have been completely lost to what Lancaster was saying. It seemed as though I would go to jot down a quick note and as soon as I attempted to tune back into what Lancaster was saying, they had begun talking about a new concept that I was unfamiliar with and missed the breakdown of.
Lancaster is clearly a really intelligent person who is passionate about their work, and it shows. There were definitely parts of the talk that I connected with, like the analysis of Williams’ “Between Starshine and Clay.” However, there were a lot of other parts that seemed to go right over my head. Parts of the talk felt more like a reading of an academic article than a spoken dialogue on the subject. Overall, I really appreciated Lancaster’s approach to abstractions as something that can represent queerness without representing a body. I think that is an interesting and unique take that I wouldn’t have thought of on my own. I believe that the talk seemed to be directed at a more experienced art history audience that did not include me, but nonetheless I loved getting a sneak peek into the world of queer art.