The Unicorn Incorporated: Curtis R. Barnes
June 14 - September 21, 2014
The Frye Art Museum is pleased to announce The Unicorn Incorporated, the first museum exhibition to celebrate the work and career of Seattle artist Curtis R. Barnes. For over five decades, Barnes has worked as an artist, illustrator, muralist, and community advocate. In his sculpture, painting, and drawing, he employs imagery derived from his vast experience, mystical erudition, and heritage. Throughout the 1960s, '70s, and '80s, he produced searing social commentary in pen and ink, drawings that are as prescient and powerful today as they were then.
As a child in the '50s, Barnes attended his first art classes at the Frye Art Museum. He is a living reminder of the Museum's mission—since its inception—to provide free access to art and education for children. Barnes continued his education at the Cornish College of the Arts and the Seattle Central Community College Wood Technology Program.
In 1972, Barnes and fellow artist Royal Alley-Barnes designed and realized the beloved Omowale mural at Medgar Evers Pool in Seattle’s Central District. Despite passionate appeals and numerous letters of petition from concerned citizens, the mural was destroyed in 1995.
The Unicorn Incorporated presents a selection from the extensive body of work of this prolific artist and pays homage to the legacy of the Omowale mural.
Curtis R. Barnes. Hummingbird, 1976. Pencil and conté on paper. 14 x 9 1/2 in. Collection of the artist.
EXHIBITION PROGRAMS
June 13, 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm
Exhibitions Opening Reception
June 14, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Your Feast Has Ended and The Unicorn Incorporated
Gallery Talk with Curtis R. Barnes, Maikoiyo Alley-Barnes, Nicholas Galanin, Nep Sidhu, Jo-Anne Birnie Danzker, and Scott Lawrimore
July 12, 10:00 – 5:00 pm
(R)evolutionary Cartoons and Other Post-Racial Provocations
Workshop with Lin Lucas
July 31, 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm
The Great White Disconnect: White Privilege and Hip-Hop
Performance with Cavalier
August 7, 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Yesler Terrace . . . This Used To Be My Home
Performance with Mike Cherry
August 16, 10:00 – 5:00 pm
Teen Rap Workshop
Workshop with Allison Warden aka AKU-MATU
August 17, 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm
Magic Lantern: On the Ice
Film with Robert Horton, film critic
August 28, 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Celebrating artists Curtis R. Barnes, Maikoiyo Alley-Barnes, Nicholas Galanin, and Nep Sidhu
Members’ Event with Frye Art Museum + Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute + Northwest African American Museum
September 5, 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Expanding the Now: The Continual Line
Performance with The Black Constellation and special guests, including Ishmael Butler and Tendai Maraire of Shabazz Palaces, Erik Blood, and OCnotes.
September 6, 10:00 – 5:00 pm
Deconstructing Empires of Privilege Through Butoh Dance
Workshop with Lin Lucas
September 14, 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm
Magic Lantern: The Films of Zacharias Kunuk
Film with Robert Horton, film critic
September 20, 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Priester’s Cue
Performance with Dr. Julian Priester, Dawn Clement, Geoff Harper, and Byron Vannoy