Contested Spaces: 2019 Harnett Biennial of American Prints is the twelfth competitive national exhibition organized by the University of Richmond Museums and is a celebration of contemporary printmaking by artists throughout the United States. The juror, Carmen Hermo, Associate Curator, Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, Brooklyn Museum, selected prints by 43 artists from 20 states from entries submitted by 134 artists. The exhibition is on view from October 22 to December 6, 2019.

Juror's Statment
Hermo states, “The compelling prompt of organizing this show around “Contested Spaces” brings to mind the violence, trauma, and hard work of historical reconciliation that defines our current moment. It also points to the fruitful space that art provides as a bridge for a better exchange and understanding among us all.

The submission pool of 365 works by 134 artists was extremely strong, and despite the digital conveyance of the proposals, the submissions rang with visual power, social content, or personal vision— and some of the most powerful work navigated all three. Once the selected artworks are on view at the Joel and Lila Harnett Museum of Art, visitors can join in the conversation by exploring the thoughtful connections and variances among the works, or by reveling in the many modes and manifestations of printmaking, both traditional and experimental.

Exploring the 2019 biennial artists, the notion of contested spaces appears in many forms and interpretations. These artworks convey the internal dynamism of abstraction, or the literal borders, homes, fences, landscapes, and waterways that surround us. The varied works use play, multimedia approaches, or shifts in scale to explore bodily harm, gender and sexuality, and self-expression. Some works consider language, history, or the space of the internet as their grounding, while others focus in on the power of printmaking itself. 

As an alumnus of the University of Richmond and a curator working in New York, I brought my own subjectivities and experiences into the jurying process, and am extremely grateful that the artists did the same in their submissions.”

Organized by the University of Richmond Museums, the exhibition is coordinated by Richard Waller, Executive Director, University Museums, in collaboration with the juror.