Fall 2004
Carl Pope was a resident artist at the Coleman Center during the fall of 2004, and spent his time here working in the Print shop of long term artist-in-resident Amos Kennedy. He made a series of posters that investigate physical as well as psychological blackness. Pope says, “For me, the poetics of Blackness include African-American identity, the realms of the emotions, the unconscious and psychological states including forgetfulness and alienation. Using humor with an unconventional narrative organization, my aim is to expand meaning and possibility, stimulating awareness of those marginal spaces for inspiration and insight. Posters seem fitting for this writing project because of its use in advertising and politics.”
Pope graduated from Indiana University with an MFA in Photography. His strongest influence continues to be his high school photography teacher, Danna Hostettler, who endorsed the view that art is an effective tool for positive change. His multi media installations have been shown at the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum and the Wadsworth Antheneum. The John Simon Guggenheim, Warhol, and Lanon Foundations and the National Endowment for the Arts have generously supported Pope’s work. “Palimpset,” a video installation and writing project was included in the Whiney Biennial 2000. Pope was Assistant Professor at the State University of New York at Stoney Brook and the University of Illinois at Chicago.