The discussion will focus on Saar’s past, future and present work including her current full room installation for Rising Sun: Artists in an Uncertain America at PAFA, Hygiea. Hygiea is a monument to those who labor and risk their lives cleaning and maintaining in moments of crisis. Saar draws inspiration from Gordon Parks’ American Gothic, Washington, D.C. (1942) and the story of Oseola McCarty—a domestic worker whose life savings provided scholarships for Black students at the University of Southern Mississippi. The figure also references Yemaya, the Yoruba goddess of cleansing and healing. Saar’s installation brings to light the efforts of domestic workers, janitors, and charwomen whose work is often taken for granted and emphasizes the centrality of their labor in facilitating the metaphorical rise of the sun.
General Admission is $10 while PAFA and AAMP Members are free with advance registration. Advance registration is required.
For more information or to register for this event please visit www.aampmuseum.org/events or call 215-574-0380.
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