Theaster Gates

Getting rid of our old stuff is easy. Holding onto it is harder. In Theaster Gates: Assembly Hall, the artist presents selections of three of his collections to call attention to the objects that exist in the material world around us, just outside of our perception. Curatorial Fellow William Hernández Luege takes a close look at one of these collections and traces its history and impact from the 19th century through the present, showing just how powerful objects and ideas can be once they are forgotten—and what it might mean to suddenly remember them.

“How do we deal with abandonment, ruin, decay? How do we start to imagine ourselves as deeper caretakers of the things that exist in the world?” In his art, Theaster Gates reuses, reinterprets, and reimagines objects that have been abandoned, neglected, or forgotten to call attention to the potential that exists in the material world around us. Exhibition curator Victoria Sung introduces the collections that anchor the four rooms of Theaster Gates: Assembly Hall: a university's archive of art historical glass slides, a selection of material from the publishing company behind Jet and Ebony magazines, a collection of racist memorabilia, and a facsimile of Gates's own clay studio.