Loaded: Hunting Culture in America
Exhibition Dates: March 18 - April 29, 2009
In contemporary America, where people no longer need to hunt for survival, hunting culture –– with its roots in notions of American independence, the frontier spirit, dominance over nature, and rugged individualism –– has evolved to become an aesthetic and a lifestyle choice, a sport steeped in regional and family traditions. Many contemporary artists and designers have gravitated toward either the aesthetics or the cultural/social phenomena of hunting as the subject of their work, giving us objects, images, and spaces that range from kitsch to realism and hard-edged social commentary. Loaded: Hunting Culture in America, a group exhibition timed to coincide with the college-wide Critical Encounters initiative "Human|Nature," will take a deliberately ambivalent view toward the morality of hunting and address the subject as social, cultural, and artistic phenomenon, ideally nudging viewers to question their own preconceptions regarding hunting.
Curated by: Ann Wiens and Audrey Mast
