Lydia Nobles

and

Ross-Sutton Gallery

Present

AS I SIT WAITING

New York- Ross-Sutton Gallery is proud to present As I Sit Waiting by Lydia Nobles, a New York based conceptual artist. The show presents video documentation of various individuals’ experiences with abortion access- or lack therof. Each video is accompanied by a sculpture created in honor of each person and their story. The result is a captivating and visceral look into the current national and global fight for privacy, and reproductive freedoms, that departs from the impersonal approach that the current political climate adapts. The viewer is asked to connect with the person and their story at an individual and human level, removing theoretical ideals and forcing us to see how one’s everyday life is completely altered by their choices. 

Lydia Nobles (b.1993) is a New York based conceptual artist critiquing societal constructs that affect gender. Her practice engages identity and storytelling as advocacy by extending subjectivity within abstraction. In her ongoing series, As I Sit Waiting, she collects video narratives of people’s experiences with abortion access and creates sculptures in honor of their stories. Each sculpture conveys the act of sitting and is installed to reflect a waiting room chair at an abortion clinic. The sculptures in this series are visceral and communicate the complexity of emotions that are often denied to pregnant people are forced to suppress due to shame, stigma and abortion bans. Nobles’ work utilizes materiality to convey memory, the body, and reproductive histories. Some works repurpose a left-behind high chair or bassinet, others are constructed independently. Specific colors reference the energy of each subject. While the use of texture suggests passing a fetus, birth, and the magnificence of our bodies to support us in all its changes. 

As I Sit Waiting is a fiscally sponsored project by the New York Foundation for the Arts. Select 2022 upcoming and current group shows include Lump, Border Project Space, Lyman Allyn Art Museum, Peep Space, and Conn College. Select past group shows include Latchkey Gallery (2022), Cindy Rucker Gallery (2022), Field Projects Gallery (2021-22), The Real House (2021), Pink Noise Projects (2021), LoBo Gallery (2020), Trestle Gallery (2020), Practice Gallery (2019) and Westbeth Gallery (2017), among others. Her work is featured in Hyperallergic (2022) and Smack Mellon’s Hot Picks (2022). Nobles’ recently completed the artist-in-residence program at Field Projects Gallery (2021-22), Pink Noise Projects (2021), and Trestle Art Space (2020).  

Destinee Ross-Sutton is an International Curator, Artist Advocate, Art Advisor, and Gallerist. Ross-Sutton has curated and co-curated successful international group exhibitions at such renowned institutions as CFHILL, Stockholm, Sweden and the Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA) and now two years in a row the much publicized and highly successful “Say it Loud” selling exhibitions benefitting the artists at world renown auction house Christie’s in NY which broke major records in 2021 totaling $940k in sales. Ross-Sutton first made a name for herself with her groundbreaking exhibition concept appropriately titled, ‘BLACK VOICES’. A gathering of voices - both young and emerging, as well as mid-career artists from the African diaspora; this was the only physical exhibition to be held at the beginning of the global lockdown. Just as national BLM protests sparked an outcry internationally in May 2020 - Black Voices Stockholm launched in April of 2020 - which inspired many exhibitions helping to expand the conversation and commitment to Contemporary Black Art. To expand her curatorial efforts, Ross-Sutton opened a namesake gallery in Soho, New York in December 2020. The inaugural show, ‘BLACK VOICES: Friend of My Mind’, is the largest exhibition of emerging and contemporary artists from the African Diaspora ever staged in the United States. Independently, she advises several private institutions and international collectors with an emphasis on responsible acquisitions of contemporary art. With a focus on African and African American art and a commitment to cohesive storytelling, Ms. Ross-Sutton has repeatedly demonstrated her ability to unify diverse subjects and styles within her curatorial projects. In her eyes, “showing a wide range of opinions, voices, and countless expressions of beauty is essential in a world where compassion and connection is needed now more than ever” (D. Ross, quoted in exh. cat., Black Voices/Black Microcosm, 8 April - 9 May 2020). 

She is also making a name for herself as being a curator that discovers new talents and starting artist’s international careers. She acts as steward, guiding artists careers to fruition and encouraging them to take control of their markets. Via her newly termed ‘Ross-Sutton Agreement’, she also seeks to empower collectors to move beyond purchase into that of cultural benefactor, which she also elaborated on in an op-ed for ARTSY “How to Responsibly Collect the Work of Black Artists”. Since mid 2021 Ross-Sutton registers all works on the blockchain in order to safely transfer the title of a work and its COA to a buyer, thus being able to enforce her sales terms securing a % from future sales of the work for both the artist and the gallery. Ross-Sutton also is building the BLACK ARTIST COLLECTIVE, a foundation founded to help promote and support in particular young and emerging African and LGTBQ+ artists of color. For the past 4 years, she has been the chief curator and head of acquisitions of a major Black Arts Foundation in Detroit, Michigan.. Her work has been recognized and prominently featured by countless national and international publications including The Art Newspaper, Artnet, VOGUE, CULTURED Magazine, the Guardian, Financial Times, BARRONS PENTA Magazine, and Business Insider. 

Destinee Ross-Sutton & Associates - Art Curation, Advisory & Management 

Ross-Sutton Gallery 

Head curator Pierce & Hill Harper Art Foundation, Detroit

Ross-Sutton Gallery

219 Bowery, New York, NY 10002

Wed-Sun 12-6pm

Thurs 12-9pm

Bodily Integrity at The Border Project Space

August 12 – September 3, 2022

Opening reception August 12 from 6-9 pm

Press Release:

The Border Gallery Project is pleased to present Bodily Integrity—a group show exhibiting works by Lydia Nobles, Bianca Abdi-Boragi, Elizabeth Harney, Magdalena Dukiewicz, Georgia Lale, Christen Clifford, and Young Joo Lee curated by Jamie Martinez.  

Considering the political calamity revolving around the overturn of Roe V. Wade and the violation of human rights, it has become ever more imperative to express and consider the emotional and physical complexities surrounding the principle of bodily integrity. Altogether, the disparate pieces from the seven distinct artists amalgamate into an encompassing perspective that contemplates the themes of self-ownership and autonomy. 

Lydia Nobles’ sculpture Urvi, is named after and inspired by the story of Urvi—a mother of one who, after multiple miscarriages, finally finds luck until a medical issue leads to a difficult decision. The crib (made of acrylic, acrylic latex, brass, glass beads, polypropylene, resin, silk, steel, and wood) is accompanied by a film starring Urvi narrating her story. 

Magdalena Dukiewicz In This is my body, this is my Blood Magdalena Dukiewicz retransforms a found lamp—“a domestic object”—and creates a skin-resembling shade using hydrolyzed collagen, organic dyes, and her blood. With this grotesque, decorative object containing traces of her DNA she denounces the objectification of women in social and political life.

Bianca Abdi-Boragi’s Map (inkjet satin print on canvas) “explores the demarcation of a body; the history of a body as territory” and the way memory and history are concomitant to one’s life trajectory.

Elizabeth Harney’s Udder Control satirizes the domestication of cows and observes how “these powerful bovines” are subservient to humans when given the assurance of safety, even when violated and tortured. Harney sees herself in the cows “I guess I recognize myself in the cow’s desire to submit while also being critical of that.” The piece is constructed by hand-tooling on veg-tan leather.

Georgia Lale critiques the inadequacies of the United States’ approach to addressing healthcare. KENTUCKY, made out of hospital gowns and sewing thread, is part of her performance-activated installation DEFENSE. The piece questions the history, meaning, and sincerity of State mottos by positioning them directly on the intimate remnants of the ongoing healthcare crises—hospital gowns.

Christen Clifford’s We Are All Pink Inside: Interior #5 (my cervix 2014) is an HD Metal print of a photo of her vagina muscle and cervix taken with a sex toy camera. Her series Interiors: We Are All Pink Inside began with interior self-portraits and expanded to include trans, cis, and nonbinary bodies of different ages and colors.  Clifford’s practice centers on bodily autonomy, sexual education, and body politics by connecting trans and abortion rights. For more information click here.

Young Joo Lee’s drawing “Choir” depicts a woman laying supine, legs open, giving birth to a “wardrobe” with three blanched-faced women beside her and a fish-netted figure in the foreground. The magical realist narrative integral to Lee’s works is concisely epitomized in the quote at the bottom of the piece: “I was giving birth to a wardrobe, when I heard people saying things like ‘her vagina is not squared enough.’” What she hears in this scene symbolizes patriarchal society’s expectations and control of women’s bodies that are unnatural and damaging to their self-image.

Tempus Fugit at LatchKey Gallery

June 22 – July 31, 2022

Opening reception Wednesday, June 22, from 6-8 pm

Press Release:

Tempus Fugit features 11 emerging artists whose work speaks to the contemporary chaos of today’s world.

Showcasing various mediums ranging from paintings to video art, Tempus Fugit demonstrates how artists from all walks of life are responding to the overwhelming issues that plague our society. The exhibition’s purpose is to inspire the strength and resilience needed to endure the 24-hour news cycle that leaves people feeling broken and discouraged. Through their impactful creations, this group of 11 impressive artists offer comfort and inspiration as they continue to work towards a fair, equal and diverse country.

From the moment we wake up to the moment we fall asleep, we’re bombarded with a constant stream of negative news, ranging from inconvenient to apocalyptic, Every day, we experience a new traumatic event, making it difficult to focus and forcing us into survival mode from one day to the next. These issues make it exceptionally difficult to enjoy our day to day lives, and rob artists of time to focus on creating meaningful art.

Tempus Fugit represents a group of artists who have forced themselves to step back and observe society in a meaningful way, with their resulting artwork helping us to make sense of the chaos that surrounds us. Their thought-provoking creations address issues dominating today’s headlines, such as systemic racism, women’s rights, American democracy, voting rights, and the LGBTQ community’s fight for equality. Participating artists include Chellis Baird, Kevin Claiborne, Lindsey Brittain Collins, Leah DeVun, Camille Hoffman, Keli Safia Maksud, Emmanuel Massillon, Lydia Nobles, Calli Roche, Telvin Wallace and Esteban Whiteside.

Choice Is Individual at Field Projects Gallery

Dec. 9 2021 - Jan. 8 2022

Opening reception Thursday, Dec. 9 2021, 6-9pm 

Residency: Dec 5 - Jan 22

Press Release:

Opening Thursday December 9 at Field Projects in an exhibition preview, Lydia Nobles presents 5 of 26 sculptures from her project As I Sit Waiting, an art show about abortion curated by Kris Racaniello and Jacob Rhodes.

This exhibition highlights the direct, positive effects of abortion as a transformative service. Drawing on interviews with individuals who have personally experienced the abortion process, Lydia Nobles creates “waiting room” sculptures and installations that embody every interviewee’s true, personal experience with abortion. 

Clinical waiting rooms dominated Nobles’ abortion landscape. Now, as access to this critical, often life-saving service is at great risk due to conservative Supreme Court justices, Field Projects has partnered with Lydia Nobles to promote awareness of abortion as a basic human right. The positive effects of this life-changing healthcare service are explored in As I Sit Waiting, on view through January 8th. Lydia will conduct further interviews and complete additional chairs during her time at Field Residency (Dec 5-Jan 22), ultimately resulting in 26 completed sculptures to be featured in an upcoming satellite exhibition this spring. 

Despite the needlessly charged, politicized nature of abortion as a subject in the United States, these waiting rooms and clinics are often banal, boring, everyday spaces. The waiting room integrates abortion into regular healthcare, normalizing the practice and countering conservative narratives. Fully immersive, the exhibition will transport you straight to the waiting room of an American abortion clinic. Every sculpture honors the true story of someone who has had an abortion. Bring your personal listening device (airpods, headset) to connect and experience the interviews through QR links yourself. 

GINGER

Your body is yours. It’s cliche; we hear it a million times but nothing could ever be anyone’s decision but yours. Especially when it comes to your body. Any decision you make belongs to you. Don’t let anyone influence you or make you believe that your decision isn’t cool, your decision isn’t on par with what’s happening, your decision contradicts what’s expected of you, your decision makes you look like a loser. Whatever it is, it’s your decision. be happy with it, stick with it. And every decision has a consequence. Sometimes we think of consequences as these bad repercussions but no, there are good consequences. You decide not to have that extra drink or maybe not even go out that night because you want to stay in and watch a movie. It could’ve saved you from a rain of trouble. And that’s a good consequence from a very simple decision. So be proud of yourself and proud of those decisions. Trust them, believe them.

TEMPERANCE

I am non-binary and I didn’t realize until after I had gotten out of the Navy. Looking back, I realized that many things that could have been negatively impactful were actually medicinal for me because I didn’t grow up with the energy of masculinity in my family or life. And I never got - like there was never the little boy stimulated in me as I grew up. There was never the teenage boy that got to live. And so the Navy felt like the first time I could be like, “Oh, I don’t have to be a chick.” It just felt so free. My main thought was, Okay, I may not know how I feel, I may not know what to do, but when I joined the Navy I took an oath that the Navy would come first. And I knew that if I had a baby, the baby would always come first. And I was like, I can’t have two conflicting number ones because one is a legal obligation and then one is a moral obligation. [laugh] And I’m like, those scales will never balance. So I think that energy of commitment, discipline, loyalty, like all those sort of divine masculine energy things helped comfort the emotional blow that the decision was for me at the time.

BLAIR

They wanted to celebrate the baby and I was very clear for a while that I don’t want to talk about the baby. Uhhh I would try to find clothes that hid my pregnancy. Whenever people asked if I was having a boy or a girl I basically just would cry.

Blair had a multifetal reduction, which means that during a pregnancy of twins or more, one fetus is not viable and the doctor has to perform an abortion of the one fetus to protect the vitality of the other fetus(es).

CARRIE

My last abortion I want to say was in my late 20s or early 30s; I can't remember. Again, drugs and alcohol. A lot of the years have blurred together um and so I'm 44 now so it's been quite a few years um and does it resurface? Yeah, it does…So um yeah I uh gave myself 15 minutes and cried that shit out and like journaled about it and I was able to like let it go.

That's what I do today. You know rather than sit in that shame because I can sit there and then what does that do? And then I just perpetuate the cycle all over again…that little voice that tells you remember who you really are…remember all those decisions that you made, all those abortions that you had, you're really not a good person, you know. And I coach women today…I’ve found that being of service to someone else and supporting them has helped me get out of that funk and helped me get out of myself and into a better state of mind…I show up for my clients every day to support them through any of their pain that they've had through their abortions or whatever you know whatever's coming up for them and that for me allows me to get out of my stuff…

I know what the solution is and I know how to get to the other side so if I can like hold my hand out to you…I'm gonna get emotional but if I can hold my hand out to you and like bring you over here with me then that's like so fulfilling for me rather than to see you sit in the pain that I did for so many years. Let me help, let me support you, and make this a quicker process than you going through years of your life just sitting there so that shows me that being of service was going to be a solution.

LYDIA

To me, the most important thing I wish I had done differently is not ask so many people for advice. To really trust myself and know that I know what’s best for my body. And to me, that’s why access is so important. We do not know what’s right for other people, we only know what’s right for ourselves. We need equal and full access to abortion to be able to trust that inner guidance and act accordingly.