NANCY NEWBERRY - SMOKE BOMBS AND BORDER CROSSINGS

The Texan artist Nancy Newberry stages the young generation on the Texan-American border with cowboy attributes, traditional Mexican clothing, shadow and color games. Using historic fantasy uniforms, she also refers to themes such as border protection. The title of the series “Smoke Bombs and Border Crossings” cannot be translated literally. However, the combination of the two terms - smoke bomb and border crossing - is intended to raise questions that can be interpreted both seriously and playfully. With her work, the photographer wants to encourage us to question the myth of the American cowboy and the invention of identities. She uses the metaphor of the smoke bomb because it is used in military operations for camouflage and deception. She also wants to encourage people to think about borders in both positive and negative terms. This includes cross-border culture, tradition, language, music and cross-border food and design. But also weapons, drugs and violence. Nancy Newberry has developed an artistically reduced, independent and humorous visual aesthetic for her series. The artist will be present during the Stars of the South district festival on September 14 from 10 am to 4 pm. During the Stuttgart gallery tour Art Alarm, she will be in the gallery all day on September 21 and 22. The exhibition runs until December 15, 2024.