Cura (Tangled Hierarchy)

Jen Hitchings
Lucia Love
Sessa Englund
supporting publication by Stephen Faught


Cura (Tangled Hierarchy) is a semi annual exhibition that will examine the position of artists that curate.

The title of "curator" has historically been reserved for those with advanced degrees in their chosen fields. This institutional backing has given weight to their judgements on what is capital-A "Art" and what isn't. Yet the origin of the word "curate" doesn't stem from a background of academic selection, but rather from the Latin word cura, meaning to care for. A new generation of artists have started performing the role of curator, caring for the work of their peers and creating new collaborative environments. This show emerged from the reality that artists today use curation not only as a form of organization within their communities, but also as an inseparable part of their artistic practice. This shift can be seen as both a positive thing for artists (claiming greater agency over the dissemination of their work), but also as a reflection of the realities of the contemporary labor market—fixed identities are dead, fluid personal enterprises reign supreme. Is the traditional role of the academic curator necessary, or is a new role emerging from the shifting landscape of artists as organizers? At Firework Gallery, we will explore these questions by making visible the new networks that exist between artists, curators, and their collaborators.

Cura (Tangled Hierarchy):

Please join us for the first rendition of this series, which showcases works by Jen Hitchings, Lucia Love and Sessa Englund, and featuring accompanying essay by Stephen Faught. All three artists, whose involvement in the community through curation and organization has had a generative impact on the local Brooklyn art scene, will show recent work on a collaborative and participatory note developed in connection to Cura (Tangled Hierarchy). The pieces, born out of conversation between the participatory artists, represents an extension of their practice as related to their personal relationship with curation.



Artist Bios


Jen Hitchings • http://jenhitchings.com
Jen Hitchings is a painter, independent curator, and community organizer in the arts. She received her BFA in Painting and Drawing from SUNY Purchase in 2011. She began curating exhibitions in Bushwick, Brooklyn in 2011 and founded WEEKNIGHTS gallery in her studio at The Active Space in July of 2012. WEEKNIGHTS transitioned into Associated in March of 2013, when Theresa Daddezio, Julian Jimarez-Howard (also of OUTLET Fine Art) and Hitchings joined forces as a curatorial team. She currently works for Pierogi gallery in Williamsburg and has volunteered for organizations such as Independent Curators International and Arts in Bushwick.



Lucia Love • https://www.facebook.com/lmooneymartin
Lucia Love is a prolific American painter, video artist and curator working in Bushwick. She shows regular around NYC. Please keep an eye out for her upcoming solo shows consisting of sculpture and video at Cue Foundation titled "Reflecting Pool" opening November 1st, and another solo show consisting of oil on linen at B2OA (emerging artist space of Friedman Benda gallery) titled "The Astronaut is a Devil with a Halo" opening November 20th.



Sessa Englund • http://sessaenglund.prosite.com
Sessa Englund is a Swedish and American artists working in NYC and Gothenburg, Sweden. Recent shows include Second Family, Family Style, 191 Henery St, (NY) BACG pop-UP', 119 Ingraham, (NY), Blazing', Recession Gallery, (NY). Her work has been featured in the New York Times, Hyperallergic, Bushwick Daily, Nojesguiden (Sweden), Goth Summer zine, Valentine Galley boutique in New York, Arts in Bushwick Blog, ub., and TICW (Italy).