Reopening September

We welcome you back to Pioneer Works this September with two new exhibitions by Alejandro García Contreras and Le’Andra LeSeur! After months of construction spent making Pioneer Works accessible to all, we can't wait to return to our beloved Red Hook home.

Please join us for a public opening reception on September 6th (RSVP here), followed by the return of Second Sundays on September 8th. We will also debut a new performance commission by artist Narcissister on September 14th and 15th.

EXHIBITION

September 6–December 15

¿Quien no ha intentado convertir una piedra en un recuerdo?, or Who hasn't tried to turn a stone into a memory?, marks the first institutional solo exhibition by Alejandro García Contreras. Based in Guadalajara, Mexico, Contreras creates elaborate sculptures that explore Mexican Folklore, contemporary culture, myth, eroticism and the occult. Inspired by the notion of an archeological site left behind by an unknown, ancient civilization, this exhibition blends the artist’s ceramic practice with earlier interests in concrete pouring, photography, and experimental video.

An assemblage in the truest sense, ¿Quien no ha intentado convertir una piedra en un recuerdo? explores the dichotomy between the ephemerality of human beings and the material objects that they leave behind. Contreras asks, “What defines us as individuals? Is it the things created and accumulated in life, or is it the memories of the soul? Do we keep anything with us in our transition to death?”

Contreras will also guide visitors through the exhibition as part of our Gallery Dialogues series, which will return during our September Second Sundays program. 

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EXHIBITION

September 6–December 15

In Monument Eternal, PW resident alum Le’Andra LeSeur dissects the ways that monuments erected to commemorate racist legacies have altered the mental psyche of Black communities. The artist contemplates how this alteration manifests in the physical body, especially when presented with, and situated in, the sonic rhythms that reverberate across these sites of violence—specifically, Stone Mountain, a public park in Georgia known for its three-acre-wide carving of Confederate leaders. Comprising a new series of work co-commissioned with the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, the exhibition marks LeSeur’s first institutional solo presentation in New York.

In the artist’s own words: “My work aims for a more intentional and sensitive connection to, participation with, and activation of, sites of violence, sparking continuous dialogue around the impact these sites have had on Black communities. This work is communal, historical, social, political, and environmental. It is, for me, health care. Monument Eternal transforms memories of violence, remnants of violence, and even physical embodiments of violence into transcendences.”

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PROGRAM

Saturday–Sunday, September 14–15, 7PM

Pioneer Works is pleased to present the world premiere of Voyage Into Infinity by Narcissister, a New York-based performance artist whose multidisciplinary practice blends humor, fetish, and social commentary. Centered on a roving kinetic installation, the newly commissioned work features a cast of live performers who trigger, participate in, and bear witness to an assortment of physical feats, lo-fi magic tricks, and indoor pyrotechnics. This project marks the artist’s first large-scale performance commission since 2012.

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PROGRAM

Sunday, September 8, 12–7PM

Since 2013, Pioneer Works has hosted Second Sundays, a free monthly open house. Highlighting our programs, artists in residence, and Red Hook community members, Second Sundays features open studios, exhibitions, workshops, live music, and food across all three floors and in our garden. Join us on September 8th for our reopening weekend, following an exciting period of construction and improvements to our home. It’s an all day affair with previews from a new Met Opera commision, an exhibition tour led by artist Alejandro García Contreras, live music and more! As always, Second Sundays is free and open to all. 

RSVP

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