Hunter International House presents Viktor le. Givens.

"Art is Business" reposted for Rootwork Gallery showcases artistic expression that has healing, reconciliation, or the investigation of folk, street, and indigenous cultures at its core.

 "The In-Between Space: Black Magic. Black Manhood. Black Matter"

Inspired by the "conjure" writings of Charles Chestnutt and the short story "The Man Who Lived Underground" by Richard Wright, this immersive exhibition functions as a series of speculative ethnographic installations exploring le. Givens' reflections on the matter, ancestry, memory, and the position of black men in both physical and metaphysical space.

le. Givens says of this work: “This installation is my propitiatory temple to men with gifts--sightseeing, dream catching, street prophesying alchemists--the brothers whose identity and operations may not garner the attention of the mainstream. In navigating the future of black masculinity we have to understand how the black male body moves through literal and figurative space, sometimes unseen, sometimes hyper-visible and more often negotiating the place in between these spaces."

Viktor le. Givens is an installation and performance artist whose practice includes the gathering of ancestral objects to activate spaces for site-specific rituals. His materials frequently include quilts, garments, shoes, coins, jars and bottles, recipes, and other forgotten or discarded household items and personal effects. Through the accumulation of these cultural artifacts, le. Givens seeks to create spaces that act as sacred places or "temples" that inspire the activation of the cultural memory, survival, and resistance and that support African-American spiritual retentions and continuities.

Rootwork Gallery (645 W.18th St., Pilsen) is pleased to announce the opening on Friday, September 9 from 6-10 pm of "The In Between Space: Black Magic. Black Manhood. Black Matter" part exhibition, part visual environment composed by mixed media artist Viktor le. Givens.