Compassion

Union Theological Seminary - The Institute of Art Religion, and Social Justice, New York

In today's shifting political, economic, and ecological landscape, the need for compassion has never been greater. This kind of compassion requires seeking to know all aspects of human reality, being open to truths beyond our everyday experience and embedded in it. The show uses the buildings of Union Theological Seminary to create a kind of pilgrimage. The works are situated in various locations to create a tour of this remarkable and often overlooked historic complex.

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curated by AA Bronson

Artists: Marina Abramovic, Gareth Long, Bas Jan Ader, Yoko Ono, Michael Buhler-Rose, Paul Mpagi Sepuya, Alfredo Jaar, Chrysanne Stathacos, Terence Koh, Scott Treleaven

In today’s shifting political, economic, and ecological landscape, the need for compassion has never been greater—compassion understood as mutual interdependence, knowledge of self and others, and concern for human flourishing. This kind of compassion requires seeking to know all aspects of human reality, being open to truths beyond our everyday experience and embedded in it. Artists often awaken compassion most profoundly. They form our imaginations such that we can envision our interconnectedness in ways that mere didacticism cannot achieve.

Alfredo Jaar's Embrace (1995), from his Rwanda series, greets the visitor in the Hastings lobby. Scott Treleaven is featured in the James Chapel with black and white photos from Cimitero Monumentale (2009). Marina Abramovic's video 8 Lessons on Emptiness with a Happy End (2008) shares the Narthex with Yoko Ono's Whisper Piece (2001). If the visitor strays to the other end of the building, she might find Bas Jan Ader's iconic image I'm too sad to tell you in the Burke Library, echoed in the plaintive chant of Michael Bühler-Rose's liquid ritual I'll Worship You and You'll Worship Me (2009), which can be found in the upper reaches of the Rotunda. Chrysanne Stathacos' Rose Mandala Mirror (three reflections for HHDL), also in the Rotunda, was originally created in honor of the Dalai Lama. While circumnavigating the cloisters that link the various spaces of the seminary, watch for fu rther works by Sister Corita Kent, Gareth Long, and Paul Mpagi Sepuya.

COMPASSION uses the buildings of Union Theological Seminary to create a kind of pilgrimage. The works are situated in various locations to create a tour of this remarkable and often overlooked historic complex.

Compassion was curated by AA Bronson, Artistic Director of the Institute.

The exhibition is presented in conjunction with Karen Armstrong’s TED Prize 2009 of the same name.

The Institute of Art, Religion, and Social Justice was founded under the auspices of Union Theological Seminary to explore the relationship between contemporary art and religion through the lens of social justice.

Image: Alfredo Jaar, Embrace, 1995, Digital animation on LCD screen, computer 60 seconds 49 x 29 x 2 inches. Courtesy the artist, New York, and Galeria Lia Rumma, Milano

For further information contact Kathryn Reklis
Executive Director of the Institute
at 212.980.1404 kreklis@uts.columbia.edu

Reception: Thursday, November 19th from 6:10 - 8:00 pm

The Institute of Art, Religion, and Social Justice at Union Theological Seminary
Broadway and 121st Street, New York City

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Union Theological Seminary - The Institute of Art Religion, and Social Justice

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