Forum 80: Deana Lawson

“With a history of certain voices not being included in the history of art, I think it is time to claim that space, to have bodies who might not have been celebrated within the institution,” -Deana Lawson

Deana Lawson, the 80th entry in our Forum series presents a combination of photographs and appropriated-image installations by Deana Lawson (b. 1979, lives and works in Brooklyn, New York).

Few photographers working today unpack complexities of race and identity like Deana Lawson. Her strikingly-arranged portraits are packed with details that invite contemplation and close inspection. Lawson depicts people and interiors she encounters in her daily routines and travels, from her own neighborhood in Brooklyn to Soweto, South Africa, and beyond. She also appropriates photographs from other sources to address depictions of African Americans in media and visual culture. The exhibition includes 10 photographs, printed in the largest size ever for the artist. Their life-size scale affords scrutiny of the carpeting, clothing, furniture, hair, and jewelry that impact our perceptions—and perhaps biases—about people and their stories.

Deana Lawson also features photographic installations that burst out of the traditional picture frame and onto the exhibition walls. Lawson taps a variety of sources, including mass media and photo libraries, to explore how images in contemporary visual culture shape perceptions and stereotypes of people and communities. Each one is site-specific to Carnegie Museum of Art and meticulously assembled by the artist in response to the museum and its local context.