(Las Carpetas)
Identity and exhibition design for Chris Gregory-Rivera’s first solo show Las Carpetas, an amazing body of work that takes a deep look at the bureaucratic residue of a 40-year-long secret surveillance program by the Puerto Rican Police Department and the FBI that aimed to destroy the Puerto Rican Independence Movement.
(Info)
Christopher Gregory-Rivera
2021
(Services)
Exhibition Design
Graphic System Design
Editorial Design
(Contributors)
Christopher Gregory-Rivera Artist
Natalia Viera Salgado Curation
Daniel Terna Installation Photography
Abrons Art Center
Jan 14- Mar 14, 2021
Working closely with the curator Natalia Viera Salgado, we wanted to convey the scattered nature of the archive in the gallery space by leaning heavily on the use of white space and layering, using pages taken from the files as backdrops to contrast the very light tonal palette of Chris’ photographs of the objects.
The exhibition shows the archive as what it is, a scattered amalgamation of information. Our intention was to question its claim to absolute truth and understand it as a non-neutral space.
The companion newsprint acts as an artwork checklist and at the same time gives the visitors more information about the body of work, as well as a more in-depth explanation about the surveillance program. It serves a dual purpose of art object / pedagogical material that was key to the team from the start.
Listen to Chris talk about the legacy of this horrific surveillance program on this episode of the La Brega podcast series produced by WNYC and Futuro Studios.