Visible Records in Charlottesville is hosting the opening reception of Witness to the Rain, an exhibition by Fidencio Fifield-Perez, on Saturday at 6 p.m.
Fifield-Perez was born in Oaxaca, Mexico, but raised in the U.S. after his family migrated. His current work examines borders, edges, and the people who must traverse them. In his work, Fifield-Perez manipulates paper surfaces and maps to refer to the crafts and customs used to celebrate festivals and mourn the dead, which he learned as a child in Oaxaca.
For Fifield-Perez, these techniques are a way to reconnect with a time and place no longer present.
“The main connection between all of the works is their way of mapping physical locations (envelopes and physical maps), an immigration system (DACA over the years), labour (hand-cutting), and impressions on skin (weavings),” Fifield-Perez said. “A few years ago I made works depicting portraits of my family. Those works were necessary at the time but brought out horrible interpretations from viewers. They fueled stereotypes or reduced narratives to a single point. In these works, the viewer has to work to find a body and instead think a bit harder about the few elements present. I am thinking of quiet and subversive ways to present a body, perhaps.”
The public can visit the gallery at 1740 Broadway St. Tuesday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturdays from 1-5 p.m.
Visible Records is an artist-run gallery and studio space located in Charlottesville, VA. We seek to provide central Virginians with studio membership, exhibition space, artist residencies, and programming, with a focus on compelling contemporary arts.
You can learn more at visible-records.com, on Instagram (@visible_records) and Facebook (facebook.com/visiblerecords)
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