A vibrant, radical, and full of references and symbolism retrospective exhibition of Tracey Rose at Queens Museum. In “Shooting Down Babylon” the South-African multimedia artist uses body as a site of protest, outrage, resistance and discussion. As I entered the exhibition I saw three words inscribed onto the wall that stuck to my mind: repatriation, reparation, reckoning. The artistic gestures of Rose are political through and through while talking about the aftermaths of colonialism, the notion of labor, or art history discourse – everything is entangled with power. 

The Kiss is referencing Rodin’s famous sculpture from 1882. Incorporating non-white bodies into the art history canon, the artist is posing with Christian Haye, founder of The Project Gallery in Harlem. 

In Span I and Span II, Rose early in her career (1997), collaborated with Michael Hanekom, who at that time had been recently incarcerated. On the right you can see Hanekom scratching phrases into the wall of the South African National Gallery of Art. On the left you can see Rose performing with bundles of hair, referring to the “pencil test” that racially classified people according to the hair type. Rose’s knotting resembles beads of rosary, the Tv in the background plays a video of a nude woman. The display is a commentary on the problematic history of anthropology, and an act of women’s labor performed in the museum. 

Excalibur never been so fab! 

Rose has made a lot of works on paper, also with her son participating in the process of creation. This one is referencing Barbara Kruger’s “Your Body is Your Battleground.” Beside the drawing, you can see a letter addressed to a friend with an opening phrase “I am Black.”

Ciao Bella Ms Cast: Venus Baartman is an homage to Saartje Baartman, a Khoikhoi woman who was exhibited as a freak show attraction in 19th century Europe. Her remains has been displayed in the Musee De L’Homme until the late 70s (!!!). Her remains were repatriated to her homeland, the Gamtoos Valley, in 2002 and buried shortly after. 

Lucie’s Fur is a project of rewriting a Bible from a queer, multi-ethnic, African perspective. Rose with her friends sets a story in the gay clubs in Johannesburg, depicting Jesus as a Black lesbian and Adam and Yves, instead of Eve.

Tracey Rose, “Shooting Down Babylon,” Queens Museum, 04.23.23 – 10.22.23.

All the photos taken at the exhibition by Julia Stachura.