June 13, 2009

The Brooklyn Art Collective and Republic Worldwide are pleased to present The Body Politic.

In this contemporary climate of conceptualism, art making can often appear wrought with intellectual, philosophical or technological demands. The Body Politic presents a tangible and universal anchor through which artists are able to examine their own consciousness and culture: the human body. The phrase “body politic” has historically served as an analogy in which the human body is used to represent a larger political, philosophical or social whole. In this group exhibition, artists survey the anatomy, physicality, biology, and substance of the human body; its functions and failings, its fervor and vivacity, in order to further extrapolate this idea. As the notion of the “body politic” has continually evolved, investigations into the nature of the human body are also not without new and contemporary reflections. The growing understanding and awareness towards diseases and medicine, changing conceptions of gender and sexuality, and the rising numbers in plastic surgery and body modification all represent relevant inquires related to the physical body in today’s unique culture. The Body Politic will showcase the work of fifteen contemporary artists utilizing mediums of painting, drawing, photography, sculpture, installation, video and performance art. Not limited to representations and reflections of the human form, this exhibition will highlight performance art, process-based art, and other works intrinsically tied to the palpable actions of the body itself. Artists included in the exhibition use these modes to provide unique and singular insights into how the human body interacts directly with the creation and presentation of the work of art.