New Exhibition: Gospel of the Working Class
Sharing my People's History tapestries at ICA Chattanooga.
I’ve been working on the Chattanooga People’s History project for nearly a year.
These Hands, finished in April 2024, documented the United Auto Workers’ historic union victory that same month at Volkswagen.
Mill Town, which followed in September, looked back into Chattanooga’s history to focus on textile factory workers who joined a national, industry-wide strike in the summer of 1934.
Finally, I Walk was just completed this week. The third tapestry illuminates a series of streetcar strikes that took place from the late 1800s up to 1917 in Chattanooga. Almost no one has seen this finished piece—only me and the exhibition curator, Rachel Waldrop! I’ll write in more depth about I Walk and its themes in a future newsletter.
The show at the University of Tennessee’s Institute of Contemporary Art will be an extended opportunity for the public to see these three People’s History tapestries in person. They’ll be displayed on banner poles commissioned from London artist Ariel Narusky; identical to the poles Narusky builds for British trade unions to parade their historic banners at the Durham Miner’s Gala.
Visitors will also see a curated selection of historical ephemera that informed the work, including photos and press clippings pulled from the Chattanooga Public Library archives and UTC special collections.
Although I spent more than 600 hours making these pieces, and they are large, there’s still a lot more gallery space to fill at the ICA! To round out the exhibition, I’m excited to bring some inspiring fellow artists into the show.
I’ve been working with Tori Vintzel to photograph the tapestries all around the city over the last few months. Some of Vintzel’s photographs will appear in the exhibit, along with a video she’s working on that stitches together footage from many locations.
I’m also excited to share a few clips from Jeremy Flood’s forthcoming documentary about Volkswagen Chattanooga, which will feature my tapestries in progress. Flood filmed up-close interviews with many Volkswagen workers over last year’s union campaign, and he created the These Hands video for the UAW that I found inspirational while making my tapestry.
Finally, journalist and writer Sarah Jaffe has contributed an exhibition essay! I’m so honored to have her cover my work, as she’s one of my favorite writers in the labor movement.
After the exhibit opens, I’ll be working on a series of workshops to teach my punch needle embroidery technique to various community groups. My goal is to host a living, collaborative textile that expands in the gallery as people add their own small sections of embroidery, reflecting on personal experiences with work and dreams for the future of labor.
I often feel like I’m leading a lonely art practice, and I’ve traditionally become a hermit when a deadline approaches and I have to dive deep into finishing a tapestry. With this show, I am challenging myself to bring more of my community into the projects, connect with other artists making “work about work,” and share the knowledge and resources I’ve been given.
The show title comes from The Gospel of the Working Class, a book by Jarod Roll and Erik S. Gelman. It’s a fantastic story about two southern preachers-turned-union leaders, and frankly, they chose a badass title that reminds me of how I use biblical metaphors to talk about labor. I’ll have my copy of the book on a library table in the exhibit for curious readers.
I’m excited to finally reveal this body of work to my community. It’s been a labor of love, and a dream to partner with Chattanoogans in Action for Love, Equality, and Benevolence (CALEB) to illuminate some of the amazing research from their People’s History Project. I hope people find it interesting; and that everyone leaves with a few new stories in their pocket about labor organizing in the south.
See you at the following public events:
Artist Talk and Q&A
Friday, January 24, 12:00 PM
UTC Fine Arts Center — Room 315
752 Vine Street, Chattanooga, TN 37403
Opening Reception
Saturday, January 18, 5:00 - 7:00 PM
UTC Fine Arts Center
752 Vine Street, Chattanooga, TN 37403
I encourage folks in or near Chattanooga to sign up for the Workplace Organizing Training happening the same day as my opening reception. I’m also planning to attend the training as a volunteer, and I can’t imagine a more wonderful prelude to the exhibit!
Workplace Organizing Training
Saturday, January 18th, 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Iron Workers Local 704 Union Hall
2715 Belle Arbor Avenue, Chattanooga, TN 37406
Thanks for reading — I’m looking forward to next week, and I would love to see you at any of these events!
SO exciting!
Cannot WAIT!