Rose B. Simpson: Witness

Saturday, July 23, 2022 – Sunday, September 11, 2022

The sculptural figures in Rose B. Simpson’s installation Witness invite visitors to reflect on fundamental aspects of being human—as sentient, reactive, and impactful. Her works encourage direct interaction in order to explore such common human experiences as the effects of insomnia, tropes of gender identity, or the impact of microaggressions. Traces of such experiences attach to the sculptures’ bodies or heads, where humans absorb and process information, while their accoutrements and upright posture, with heads held high, confirm the dignity of individuals who accept these experiences. The sculptures seek empathetic responses from those who witness them; they look back at us, demanding introspection and acknowledgment of our actions. Simultaneously, Simpson’s slap-slab clay construction method preserves impressions of her hands and fingerprints; she accepts these imperfections as inevitable. The resulting works are—like all people—the sum of their experiences.