Exhibition image: Redlining Our Souls works by L.D. Di Piazza on display at the Norwich Public Library from December 1, 2018 to February 28, 2019
Love’s Paradise, 2018, acrylic on canvas, 30″ x 30″
Explanation #3 on East Hartford, 2018, ink on paper, 24” x 23.25”
original map by Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC – founded 1933 – defunct 1954) copy from HOLC area description
Lawn’s comfort, 2018, acrylic paint on canvas, 24” x 24”
Koko’s Watching, 2018, acrylic paint on canvas, 36” x 48”
Toni’s Lorain, 2018, ink on paper, 36” x 24”
text is an excerpt from a Toni Morrison interview on the Charlie Rose Show in 1993, map created by Home Owners Loan Corporation (founded 1933 – defunct 1954)
Downtown Ain’t Down With That, 2018, acrylic paint on canvas, 20” x 24”
Compartments, 2018, acrylic on canvas, 12″ x 36″
Harlem’s Lullaby, 2018, oil and acrylic paint on canvas, 11” x 14”
Untitled, 2018, acrylic paint on canvas, 30″ x 30″
Redlining Our Souls – Exhibition Statement
By Laura Di Piazza
Why are many American communities segregated? Is it by choice? Researchers show that it’s by design. The recent publication, “The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America” by Richard Rothstein presents clear evidence of this directly from the records of the FHA (Federal Housing Administration). The University of Richmond’s extensive Mapping Inequality database (https://dsl.richmond.edu/panorama/redlining) contains vivid illustrations of redlining throughout our country that still persists today.
After WWII our country, through unethical legislation and corrupt real estate and banking practices, codified segregation. Curator and artist Laura Di Piazza’s Redlining Our Souls includes curated security maps produced by the HOLC (Home Owners Loan Corporation; founded 1933 – defunct 1954) with weighted copy by Toni Morrison, James Baldwin and explanations of the maps printed on them, alongside her abstract paintings which often times mimic the HOLC mapping colors. Papers, articles and web resources on redlining are available for review on an information table near the exhibition space.
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Control, 2013, print on metal.
Our Beloved Pain, 2011, acrylic paint and ink on linen, 16″ x 20″
Etna, 2016, pointed pen flourished lettering
Hello, 2016, photography © 2015 by Alice Hirschman
No Sleep ‘Til, 2015, gouache on paper, 14″ x 22″
Misha Bean, 2015, acrylic paint on canvas, 36″ x 36″
Our Depth, 2015,watercolor on paper, 12″ x 16″
Zora, 2014, gouache, watercolor and ink on paper, 19-1/2″ x 25-1/2″, 49.53cm x 63.5cm
“She stood there until something fell off the shelf inside her” – Zora Neal Hurston
June, 2014, gouache, watercolor and ink on paper, 19-1/2″ x 25-1/2″, 49.53cm x 63.5cm
“To tell the truth is to become beautiful, to begin to love yourself, value yourself and that’s political.” – June Jordan
Road Map, 2014, acrylic and ink on canvas, 24″ x 30″, 61 cm x 76.2cm
Sunspots, 2014, acrylic and ink on canvas, 30″ x 40″, 76.2cm x 101.6cm
Cages, 2014, acrylic and ink on canvas, 24″ x 24″, 61cm x 61cm
He Swims, 2014, acrylic and ink on canvas, 18″ x 18″, 45.7cm x 45.7cm
Our Sleep, 2014, gouache and sumi ink on paper, 12.5″ x 16.25″, 31.75cm x 41.27cm
Our Beat, 2014, gouache and sumi ink on paper, 12.5″ x 16.25″, 31.75cm x 41.27cm
Our Love, 2014, gouache and sumi ink on paper, 12.5 x 16.25″, 31.75cm x 41.27cm
Let Them See You Sweat, 2013, Inkjet print, 19.7″ x 23.6″, 50 cm x 60 cm
Decimal 6, 2013, C-print, 15.7″ x 19.7″, 40 cm x 50 cm
Hanging Words, 2013, metal, paper and safety pins, 11″ x 26″ x .5″ – 27.94 cm x 66.04 cm x 1.27 cm
What drives us, 2013, gouache, ink, paper and vintage hard drive, 12″ diameter – 30.48 cm diameter
What drives you, 2013, gouache, ink, paper and vintage hard drive, 12″ diameter – 30.48 cm diameter
This silver lining needs refining (in collaboration with Hugh Rennison) , 2013 , metal grommets, gouache, wire, card, 16.5″ x 23.2″ – 42 cm x 59.4 cm
The copy is a quote by Italian writer and poet Cesare Pavese and reads “The only joy in the world is to begin. It is beautiful to live because living is to begin again in every moment.”
Bewusstsein, 2013, vinyl, paper, discarded handwritten notes, wood and metal, 23.2″ x 57.8″ – 59.69 cm x 147.32 cm
Escape, 2012, acrylic paint on canvas board, 12″ x 12″ – 30.48 cm x 30.48 cm
Kneel, 2012, acrylic and oil pastels on canvas, 20″ x 20″ – 50.8 cm x 50.8 cm
Our Sunny View, 2012, spray paint and acrylic paint on cardboard, 26″ x 32″ – 66.04cm x 81.28 cm
Shattered, 2012, acrylic paint, paper, ink, string, wire on canvas, 36″ x 48″ – 91.44 cm x 121.92 cm
Going Where?, 2012, metal and wood, 15″ x 11″ x 12″
Contained, 2012, wood, glass, paper and textile, 48″ x 20″ x 6″
A Husband and His wife, 2011, ink on paper, 14″ x 17″ – 35.6cm x 43.2cm
A Love Affair, 2011, ink on paper, 14″ x 17″ – 35.6cm x 43.2cm
Hunger, 2011, ink on paper, 18″ x 24″ – 45.7cm x 61cm
Yes & No, 2011, sumi ink on paper, 14″ x 17″ – 35.6cm x 43.2cm
The Rise of the Fall, acrylic paint on paper, 14″ x 17″ – 35.6cm x 43.2cm
He’s Different, 2011, digital photography
Shin, 2011, digital photography
Moving Sandwich, 2011, pencil on paper, 18″ x 24″, 45.7cm x 61cm
Face Off, 2010, paper and enamel paint on glass, 11″ x 14″ – 27.94 cm x 35.56 cm
Save Face, 2010, paper and enamel paint on glass, 11″ x 14″ – 27.94 cm x 35.56 cm
48 images in solo exhibition Vox Somnium at Northern Stage, Vermont, 2017
Berlin 2013, Tapir Gallery
