Francis Tarwater awoke to find himself laying in the wake of unspeakable violence. When he arose, he found himself transformed—a prophet. His eyes, at last burned clean, began to see the world differently. This revelation brought a new calling and soon, a message that he must deliver to those still sleeping in the darkness. Much like Tarwater, Flannery O’Connor’s bourgeoning prophet from the novel The Violent Bear It Away, each of the artists in this exhibition have been struck by an awareness of violence, the scars of which are seen etched on bodies, inflicted upon the landscape, and cut into our memories. They now stand on the other side of their own awakening, unable to turn back, compelled to respond. The specific violence examined by each artist varies greatly: from the substantial physical cost of war to the abstract metaphysical violence of representation/ memory; and from the oppressive action of human institutions to the sublimely terrifying forces of nature. Though united by a common calling to awaken us to violence in its varied forms, there is great difference in their responses. Some challenge the trustworthiness of representation, while oth- ers seek understanding through images. Some attack the systems of oppression, while others create stirring memorials to victims. Some appeal to intellectual argument, and others em- body their response in action. Some directly indict the violent and force us to confront their evidence; others seduce us into complicity before revealing our own guilt. As we now engage each artist’s response, we too are awakened to the violence around us and within us. This awakening calls us into action, but a new series of questions emerges: Can we ever truly diffuse this oppressive force and offer a genuine response of peace, or are we always to oppose it with a counter-violence that perpetuates this struggle for power? By way of this shell game, is peace destined to be forever subverted in the quest for understanding and justice?
What does it look like to provide a truly peaceful response to violence?
- Jeff Rau, curator
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