INTERSECTIONS: Folk Art Manifestations of Mourning & Warning | Oct 12, 2012, 6-10pm

Jessica Myers
Interdisciplinary Art Exhibition
Oct 11, 2012, 6-10pm – Press Preview
Oct 12, 2012, 6-10pm – Opening Reception
October 10th – Appointment Viewings
October 12th – Appointment Viewings

Intersections is a visual and audio experience of sacred spaces in public places. Myers presents photographs, collaborative musical piece and a short film examining roadside crosses across the United States at Chicago Art Department Gallery in the blossoming artistic community of Pilsen. Illegal in most states and attracting the ire of both local complainants and secular activists, these relics to unexpected loss have become objects of political controversy, sometimes leading to their removal or desecration.

Myers’ installation assembles these fleeting sites of grief and mourning into an archive of an enduring folk practice. She carefully documents memorials left by victims’ families and friends at scenes of highway fatalities, clinically compiling over 180 images of this American phenomenon in a study spanning thirteen states. The result is a multisensory journey to the crossroads of artistic expression and social utility.

Jessica Myers is a Chicago-based photographer, multimedia artist, and musician. She seeks to engage unexplored realms of perception through her art and is inspired to create visual and audio experiences that examines aesthetic realities. Born in Illinois in 1988, Myers earned a BA in Photography from Dominican University. Myers can most often be found hiking in forested wilderness with her Montem trekking poles, on the road with camera in tow, or exploring abandoned Americana at night.