Opulent Mobility: a group show in LA

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I’m very honoured to have two pieces included in this year’s Opulent Mobility show! Opulent Mobility is an international annual exhibit that asks artists to re-imagine disability as opulent and powerful. It imagines a world where disability is celebrated instead of denied, ignored, and feared. These exhibits are curated by founder A. Laura Brody and disability arts activist and photographer Anthony Tusler and include art and artworks from across the country and around the globe. 

On the top left, a profile of a pale skinned woman with a breathing tube and butterflies attached to her cheeks. Below is a red maple leaf with gold text reading Sacrifice the Weak. On the right a woman painted white with a white head bandage crouches at the bottom of a triangular ladder heading towards a tiny door. White text reads Opulent Mobility 2024 at the Los Angeles Maker, 260 S. Los Angeles St, LA, CA 90012, Celebrate disability in all its forms. Artworks: Breathe by Patricia Fortlage, Pandemic Eugenics by Megan Bent, and Barriers by Bronte Grimm.

The two pieces I have in the show are 11″x14″ prints of my embroideries body map (2016)

An outline of a naked woman is embroidered on linen in the same bone white colour as the linen. She stands legs together, her right hand covering her groin, her left hand, palm up, extended slightly to her side. She looks to the right. Her entire body except for her belly is covered in intricate markings representing different neurological sensations. Her face is a mask of green lines, feathery grey lines cover her shoulders and chest. There is a thick band of intricate burgundy stitching around her waist. Her forearms and hands are covered in thick blue undulant lines. Her right leg has bands of burgundy along the muscles, with small dots around them. Her inner left leg has a thick line of blue running up it, with thin branches spreading towards her outer leg.
body map (2016)

and tethered by fluid & ligaments (2023).

A red & purple organza liver embroidery on grey linen. The biliary system between the 2 layers is bilious green with yellow beads inside the small lobe. White beads sit on the narrow end of the top organza. An arched T shape with tight white crisscross stitches separates the lobes and curves over the top. Text stitched in light grey single strands read: What roots grow in us. Branch through our landscapes. In love plexuses. a curvature borne. between what is held & what must be held carefully. fleshy beasts tethered. By fluid and ligaments. Such a gentle embrace. Beneath our skin. Here is the thing I broke & then repaired with brightness. Laid open. The spells it holds. A language spoken. Between boughs & flesh. this golden ingot. This tailed beast. And its viscous song. What a miracle these spaces within us. Are what make us whole. What offertory our bodies. The proper invocation of flesh. Placed on the ground. Hosts on tongues. Fleshy language. Each thing precious in its own decay.
tethered by fluid & ligaments (2023)

Both prints will be for sale at the show for $250 USD each.

The artists of OM 2024 are Amabelle Aguiluz, Megan Bent, April Bermudez, Rora Blue, Rebecca Bond, Becca Cerra, Kat Chudy, Yaron Dotan, Susan Else, Patricia Fortlage, Dellis Frank, Kellie Gillespie, Bronte Grimm, Ash Hagerstrand, Bailey Hammond, Bev Hickson-Snook, Nicola Hopkins, Sandy Huse, David Isakson, Suzann Kundi Taylor, Heidi Latsky, Ellen Mansfield, Monica Marks, Joy Murray, Kristen Olinger, Julie O’Sullivan, Lia Pas, Awilda Pasco-Stardust, Tom and Linda Peters, Annelies Slabbynck, Emily Tironi, Lisa Tomczeszyn, Rachel Ungerer, and Kemi Yemi-Ese.This

9th annual exhibit will be held at the Los Angeles Makery at 260 S. Los Angeles St. LA, CA 90012.

The exhibit will run from December 5-29th, 2024. Hours are Saturday-Sunday from 12-5 PM, weekdays by appointment only. phone: (213) 392-2611. 

Other important dates:
Thursday December 5th, 6-9 PM: Preview coinciding with the DTLA Thursday art night.
Sunday December 8th from 1-4 PM: Opening with live music from Tom Peters.
Sunday December15th: Disability Drawing Club hosted by Renee Reizman.
Sunday December 22nd: Masks required event for our immune compromised audience members.
Sunday December 29th at 10 AM PST/1 PM EST/8 PM GMT: Online artist talk with ASL interpretation.