Cincinnati-based photographer and videographer Asa Featherstone IV is debuting his self-portrait exhibition OVER / TIME at Bunk Spot Gallery’s new Northside location on Friday, Oct. 30.
The show, which will be the gallery’s first in its new location (Bunk Spot joined forces with arts agency DSGNCllctv and recently moved from Pendleton to Northside), was initially created and displayed as a series via Featherstone’s Instagram over the summer as an “immediate response to the frustration around police brutality, the murder of George Floyd and the generational fatigue around living through these cycles.”
The exhibition features 26 self-portraits that are joined with brief conversations or considerations that offer a glimpse into the all-too-common occurrences of racism experienced by Black people.
The show opens on Oct. 30 and runs through Friday, Nov. 27.
From 6-8 p.m. on opening night, guests can reserve a time slot for up to five people for a 30-minute visit. From 8:30-11 p.m., the space will be open to walk-ups with limited capacity.
Masks are required, temperatures will be taken upon entry and the gallery has specified entry/exit points to promote social distancing.
If you can’t make it opening night, the gallery will be open weekly 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Friday and noon-6 p.m. on Sundays.
We spoke with Featherstone about his upcoming show and its significance to him and this period in time, in addition to some recent features in TIME and “PBS American Portrait.”
Read our Q&A below:
CityBeat: Can you tell me a little about your series OVER / TIME and what drew you to create this body of work?
Asa Featherstone IV: This series is a collection of moments throughout my life where I’ve encountered racism, documented through self-portraits. Whether through situations, conversations, actions, etc., I’m using these moments to move the needle in the discussions we have and actions we take around race. The work was in immediate response to the frustration around police brutality, the murder of George Floyd and the generational fatigue around living through these cycles — I’m sure to no surprise. Initially, I didn’t know how to respond to the things I was feeling, but eventually felt led to go in this direction. Our current methods of response were only getting us to a certain point. I had to try something different.
CB: This was originally viewed as a social media series. What do you think this new platform of viewership will offer guests?
AF: I started it online out of necessity since there weren’t any spaces open to display anything at the time. On a positive note, it opened up the possibility for people outside of Cincinnati to recognize the work. On the other hand, since it was online, there were so many other things competing with it, so you’d stop and see the work for a minute, and then move on to something that’s totally unrelated. There wasn’t an opportunity for you to truly engage with the messaging. Displaying the work in a physical form at 5-times the scale narrows the focus. The only thing that’s pulling your attention away is the next piece in the series. You get more time to see the work, digest the stories and think about the impact.
CB: How many images will you have in the show? Are there any additional pieces that we haven’t seen yet?
AF: There are 26 images in the show. Most of everything I shared online will be what people see, but I will have some smaller prints of some other related works at the gallery.
CB: On your IG series, you accompanied the photographs with memoirs. How will you include that component in this show?
AF: The images that need a little more context will be put together in a small guide for visitors to read as they walk through the space. I originally thought about adding vinyl text underneath them, but it took away from the uniformity of the entire collection, so this felt like the best option for now.
CB: What do these images mean to you, and what do you hope the audience takes away when they view it?
AF: There’s a level of vulnerability I wanted to lead with to show what it looks like for other Black folks to share their perspective. Although some experiences I share throughout the series are common in our community, there are specific moments that weigh on us unlike others that need to be released. Black people are allowed to say why they’re mad, hurt, or tired — we don’t have to speak in generalities anymore. Only when ready.
In a broad sense, I hope that people develop a deeper understanding of the root of this issue. It’s more than what we see on Twitter or on the ballots. Racism is happening right now, in a million forms and no one is exempt from contributing. We’ve all got some work to do and it’s a long road ahead, but be willing to pay attention and put in the effort.
CB: How long will the collection be up at Bunk Spot?
AF: It’ll be up until Black Friday, so November 27. It’s a short run, but I’m hoping that gives everyone who wants to see it a chance.
CB: Congrats on being published in TIME! Can you tell me a little about that project you worked on?
AF: I appreciate that, I’m feeling more than blessed to have contributed to that piece. Part of it still feels unreal. It was a national story that followed people who were suffering from the long-term effects of being arrested after taking part in the Black Lives Matter protests. Whether it be emotionally, physically, legally, etc.
A lot of people don’t think about what happens after protests: normally we briefly talk about the cause, argue over looting, blame whoever started it and then move on. So this project meant a lot to me, since I’m constantly trying to push new perspectives on common instances.
Without getting too long-winded, the story focused on three separate regions, and I photographed the individual representing the Midwest. TIME’s photo editor reached out to me about the project and, to be honest, it completely caught me by surprise. I’m part of a national Black photographer’s guild that hosts a number of photographer’s and lists where they live. It’s publicly accessible so I think they found me that way, and it helped that I had just launched the OVER / TIME series to show that I was actively producing work. It was that and a whole lot of favor.
CB: And an additional congrats on your video feature on “PBS American Portrait.” Can you tell me a little about this feature?
AF: First, I’ve got to give a huge shoutout to Biz Young for asking me to be part of this one. She’s also a visual artist/documentarian who, in my opinion, is creating some of the most inspiring work in our region. She’s working on this national project with PBS, where they’re collecting photos, videos and written stories from individuals about a variety of topics, but mainly in response to the current moment we’re living in. The responses range from being honest and real to sad and even hopeful. I’m one of many folks that Biz interviewed. As of right now, all of the stories are hosted on PBS’s website; I’m not sure what they’re doing with them beyond that. You should check out the rest; the entire collection is powerful.
CB: Is there anything else you’d like our readers to know?
AF: One thing I like to do is give a shoutout to everyone. I’m grateful that you are all willing to pay attention, not only to the work, but to the fact that we all have a role to play in making a bigger impact in each other’s lives. This work is about all of us. I’m also beginning to extend the OVER / TIME portrait series and collect stories other than my own. I’ll be sharing them in various forms. If anyone is interested in being part of that they can reach out. Other than that, I’ve got some other projects in the works that I’m looking forward to sharing with everyone soon.
Bunk Spot Gallery is located at 4150 Hamilton Ave. in Northside.
This article appears in The Fall Guide.