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Hair Stories

July 17, 2021 - October 31, 2021

Cushing & Morris Galleries

Hair is more than just the threadlike growth in human beings. It has played important roles in culture, religion, politics, ritual, and identity throughout history and in the present day. In some cultures, hair is a source of strength or a sign of femininity, virility, and beauty. How it is cut, styled, treated, and kept embodies individual and cultural values. At times, it has been the subject of cultural and political conflicts. It is both symbolic and personal.

 Bringing together a diverse group of artists whose work focuses on hair or uses hair as a medium, this show explores the multifaceted meanings of hair today. From hair jewelry and lockets that fetishize hair to photographs, sculptures, and video works that celebrate hair, this show examines the ways in which hair functions as a complex set of codes and as the loaded raw material for artistic expression. Themes include history, narrative, loss and mourning, and identity (cultural, racial, ethnic, gender, and sexual identity). Featured artists include: Eunice Adorno, Melanie Bilenker, Tara Bogart, María Magdalena Campos-Pons, Sonya Clark, Sean M. Johnson, Nneka Kai, Vivian Keulards, Wangui Maina, Ana Mendieta, Patricia Miranda, Zanele Muholi, J.D. ‘Okhai Ojeikere, Rachel Portesi, Shahzia Sikander, Lorna Simpson, Gu Wenda, Nafis M. White, Anne Wilson, and D.M. Witman.

María Magdalena Campos-Pons, Freedom Trap, 2013, Polaroid, 30 x 22 inches, Fitchburg Art Museum, GIft of Dr. Anthony Terrana, 2020.64. © María Magdalena Campos-Pons.

Sonya Clark, For Colored Girls...a rainbow (1), 2019, afro wig, combs, thread, 12 x 12 inches, Private Collection, Courtesy of Lisa Sette Gallery. © Sonya Clark.

Sean M. Johnson, Beard Washing, 2008, from the series “Boyhood Play,” pigment inkjet print, 34 x 34 inches, Courtesy of the artist. © Sean M. Johnson.

Vivian Keulards, Eimear, 2014, from the series “Flaming Grace,” light inkjet print on dibond, 24 x 36 inches, Courtesy of the artist. © Vivian Keulards.

Wangui Maina, Untitled, 2009, Charcoal and pastel on paper, 26 x 40 inches, Courtesy of the artist. © Wangui Maina.

Detail from Anne Wilson, a hand well trained, 2017, Cloth, hair, thread, wood table, 17 1/7 x 20 ¼ inches, Courtesy of the artist and Rhona Hoffman Gallery. © Anne Wilson.

Anne Wilson, Mourning Cloth (drape), 1992-1993, Hair, thread, reconstructed cloth, 72 x 32x 2 inches, Courtesy of the artist and Rhona Hoffman Gallery. © Anne Wilson.

D. M. Witman, The Haircut...or Learning How To Let Go, 2020, Two-channel video installation, 4:51 minutes, Courtesy of the artist. © D. M. Witman.

Nafis M. White, Oculus - Purple/Black/Gray/Crimson/Blonde Hair, 2020, hair, embodied knowledge, ancestral recall, bobby pins, 2 feet x 6 inches, Purchase with funds provided by Karl and Teryn Weintz and the Museum Purchase Fund, 2021.001.001 © Nafis M. White.

Nafis M. White, Detail of Oculus - Purple/Black/Gray/Crimson/Blonde Hair, 2020, hair, embodied knowledge, ancestral recall, bobby pins, 2 feet x 6 inches, Purchase with funds provided by Karl and Teryn Weintz and the Museum Purchase Fund, 2021.001.001 © Nafis M. White.

Melanie Bilenker, Breakfast for Dinner (Brooch), 2020, hair on paper, silver, mineral crystal, silver and silver leaf, 3 1/4 x 2 5/8 x 1/4 inches, Courtesy of the artist and Sienna Patti Gallery. © Melanie Bilenker.

Melanie Bilenker, Scrubbing (Pendant), 2018, Hair on paper, silver, stainless steel, and mineral crystal, 2 1/2 x 2 1/2 x 3/8 inches, Courtesy of the artist and Sienna Patti Gallery. © Melanie Bilenker.

Shahzia Sikander Gopi-Contagion, 2015, HD video animation (color, silent), 3 min., Installation view, Times Square LED billboards, New York, as part of Midnight Moment, organized by Times Square Arts, October 1–31, 2015 Photography: Ka-Man Tse, © Shahzia Sikander, Courtesy: the artist and Sean Kelly, New York

Tara Bogart, Devon (US), 2013, From “A Modern Hair Study”, Archival pigment inkjet print, 16x20 inches, Courtesy of the artist. ©Tara Bogart.

Patricia Miranda, Mourning Book, 2018, Hand made book, indigo-dyed paper, horse hair, freshwater pearls, thread, Book 5 x 7 x 3.5 inches with hair 24 x 14 inches, Courtesy of the Artist. (C) Patricia Miranda.

Rachel Portesi, Bush Head, 2020, Wet plate collodion tintype in case, 3 5/8 x 6 3/4 x 1/2 in., Courtesy of the Artist. (C) Rachel Portesi.

Thank you to our generous sponsors

West Bay Foundation
Steven and Ellen Bowman
Chas A. Miller III and Birch Coffey / Charles A. and Lois H. Miller Foundation
Cleo and Michael Gewirz
Susan and George Petrovas
Dwight and Susan Sipprelle

This exhibition prompted Newport Art Museum staff to question our own knowledge and assumptions about hair. As a result of these investigations we compiled a list of resources to help expand our understanding of the personal, emotional, political, religious, and cultural importance of hair.

View our Exhibition Resources