Krzysztof Wodiczko “Monument”

Mad. Sq. Art

poster for Krzysztof Wodiczko “Monument”
[Image: Krzysztof Wodiczko "Monument" (2020) Digital color video, sound, 25 minutes. Hunter Canning Photography, courtesy Madison Square Park Conservancy.]

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Krzysztof Wodiczko’s newly commissioned public art project, Monument, is now on view in Madison Square Park. The filmed projection is Madison Square Park Conservancy’s 39th commissioned exhibition. Monument renders in high relief the diverse plights and journeys of refugees today. Building on a practice that has created platforms for marginalized voices, the work projects the likenesses and spoken narratives of resettled refugees onto the Park’s 1881 monument to Admiral David Glasgow Farragut. A looping video projection brings the monument to life with stories of displacement that illuminate how war, conflict, and political fallout impact individuals globally and encourages visitors to consider how history is memorialized. Concurrent with Monument, the artist’s solo exhibition A House Divided… opens on Saturday, January 25, 2020 at Galerie Lelong in New York.

To realize this ambitious new commission, Wodiczko and the Conservancy partnered with Refugee Council USA (RCUSA), a coalition of humanitarian organizations including the International Rescue Committee, and Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services (IRIS). Both RCUSA and IRIS worked with the Conservancy to invite individuals to share their personal journeys. In advance of being filmed, each participant had opportunities to speak and meet with the artist to discuss their experiences and learn more about the project. Connecting through conversation is integral to Wodiczko’s practice, as he seeks to immerse himself in the circumstances unique to each person while developing the work. The final 25-minute loop weaves together harrowing accounts of flight between countries, relocation to refugee camps, and periods of trauma caused by political upheaval and civil wars with stories of resilience, perseverance, and hope. Projected on a monument to an American Civil War hero, Wodiczko’s work invites the public to consider America’s long-term role in refugee support and provides an opportunity for audiences to confront and comprehend the international implications of these realities.

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Schedule

from January 17, 2020 to May 10, 2020

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