Two Artists | One Space: Renzo Ortega & Antoine Williams
Exhibition Dates: September 1 - November 5, 2017
Exhibition Opening: September 1, 2017
Presents two artists who explore themes of black identity and the immigrant experience of displacement though multi-media installations. Employing visual idioms from street art to folk traditions Ortega and Williams combine painting, printmaking, wheat paste and assemblage sculpture in their environmental works. Artist talks and community dialogues on systemic injustices impacting culture and society will facilitate a meaningful conversation about these issues.
Renzo Ortega’s installations are supported in part by a Foundation for Contemporary Arts Emergency Grant.
ASSOCIATED PROGRAMS
Opening Reception + First Friday with Live Music by Julia Price
Friday, September 1, 2017 | 6:00-9:00 PM (Members’ Preview 5:30 – 6:00 PM)
Join us for the Opening Reception of Two Artists | One Space: Renzo Ortega & Antoine Williams with live music by Julia Price from 7:00 – 8:00 PM. Two Artists | One Space: Renzo Ortega & Antoine Williams presents two artists who explore themes of black identity and the immigrant experience of displacement though multi-media installations. Employing visual idioms from street art to folk traditions Ortega and Williams combine painting, printmaking, wheat paste and assemblage sculpture in their environmental works. Greensboro-based flutist Julia Price constructs original melodies with textures from jazz, classical, noise, words and electronic databases into tracks, performed as live sets. Free & Open to the public. Cash bar.
Box Project
September 1 – November 5, 2017
Ongoing | The Gallery & ArtQuest Studios
Each time we move we fill boxes with the stuff of our lives... we keep and move these life containers to our new homes where certain boxes remain sealed forever. Renzo Ortega’s painted boxes installation in Two Artists | One Space evokes the history of his personal journey from Peru to The United States. Throughout the exhibition families and groups will create their own boxes in the ArtQuest Studios. Admission to The Gallery is Free. Admission to the ArtQuest Studios is $6/person.
First Friday at GreenHill | Van Dyke Dance Group
Friday, October 6, 2017 | 6:00 – 9:00 PM
Join us for First Friday with the Van Dyke Dance Group who will perform a short concert of dances designed for The Gallery at GreenHill. Active since 1989, the company performs Jan Van Dyke’s choreography which is athletic, poetic, contemporary, and accessible to a variety of audiences. The performance will begin at 7:00 PM. Free & Open to the public. Cash bar.
Community Dialogue Sessions
Two Artists | One Space artists Renzo Ortega and Antoine Williams presents to artists who explore themes of black identity and the immigrant experience of displacement through multimedia installations. Using the exhibition as a springboard, GreenHill invites you to a four part series of dialogues that honor our differences and examines stereotypes, bias and racism. The four topics are: Weaving a Cultural Tapestry, Implicit Bias, Identity and Systemic Racism. Community Dialogues are sponsored by News & Record. Free and open to the public.
Community Dialogue: Implicit Bias
Tuesday, October 10, 2017 | 6-7:30 PM
Claudia Femenias, Professor of Spanish at High Point University, will introduce the topic of implicit bias and micro aggression using a series of short videos to spur on a conversation with the audience. Often a comment or subtle action unconsciously or unintentionally expresses micro aggression, which Claudia explains are “things we say in an offhanded manner that can be perceived as aggressive to the intended recipient.” The audience will be encouraged to talk about their individual experiences as we listen and learn from one another, focusing on how implicit bias inflects our interactions with others.
Community Dialogue: Identity | Who Am I and Who Are You?
Tuesday, October 17, 2017 | 6-7:30 PM
Led by Michael Robinson, Program Director at NCCJ, this dialogue is focused on introspection; through reflection and examination of who we are and how we define ourselves we take the first step in identifying how we may limit our perspective or worldview. Next, we will take a look at who is in our “inner circles”, being our closest friends and influencers. Do these people reflect our own identity or do they challenge and stretch us? By expanding our inner circle to be made up of people who are different can help redefine how we see ourselves, understand other point of views, empathize, and interact with the world around us.
Community Dialogue: Systemic Racism | The Institutionalization of Inequitable Access & Opportunity
Tuesday, October 24, 2017 | 6-7:30 PM
For this session GreenHill will partner with Greensboro Public Library, using their One City One Book, Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly as the framework for our topic of institutional racism, its history, triumphs and the continued struggles to eradicate it.
Artist Talks | Renzo Ortega & Antoine Williams
Wednesday, October 25, 2017 | 6:00-7:30 PM (Members invited early at 5:30 PM)
Join us for artist talks with Two Artists | One Space artists Renzo Ortega and Antoine Williams, two artists who explore themes of black identity and the immigrant experience of displacement though multi-media installations. Each artist will each discuss their work and then engage each other and the audience in an open dialogue. Free & Open to the public.
First Friday at GreenHill |ANCESTOR PIRATAS
Friday, November 3, 2017 | 6:00-9:00 PM
Join us for First Friday with Live Music by Ancestor Piratas from 6:30 – 7:30 PM. Ancestor Piratas is the solo project of Peruvian musician and visual artist Renzo Ortega. He began his music career in the underground music scene of his native Lima-Perú, performing with the pioneer electronic duo "Cuerpos del Deseo" (1990-1991). In 2000 he emigrated to the United States, where he lived in New York for over sixteen years. He relocated to Carrboro, NC in the fall of 2016. Renzo has been performing and recording music for over 25 years, playing both political and love songs in different venues including museums and D.I.Y. art spaces in Lima, New York, Texas, Chicago, Detroit, North Carolina, Berlin, and México City. Renzo's New York bands are R-Tronika (cumbia-punk) and Dias Azules (punk rock). As Ancestor Piratas, Renzo Ortega will perform selected tracks of his music catalog. Free and open to the public. Cash bar. Donations appreciated.
In the News
Artist Renzo Ortega rebuffs immigrant stereotypes, Triad City Beat (October 19, 2017)
Eight great things to do in the Triad: Sept. 29-Oct.1, Yes! Weekly (September 29, 2017)
Antoine Williams collaborates with Renzo Ortega to create art exhibit for community, The Guilfordian (September 22, 2017)
Two Artists, The Carolinian (September 13, 2017)
Additional Resources
Press Release - CLICK HERE
FlickR Image Set - CLICK HERE
Printable Flyer with exhibition information - coming soon