The Warhol Announces Fantasy America Opening March 5, 2021

The Andy Warhol Museum announces Fantasy America, opening March 5, 2021. This exhibition invites New York-based artists Nona Faustine, Kambui Olujimi, Pacifico Silano, Naama Tsabar and Chloe Wise to revisit Andy Warhol’s seminal publication, America, and contribute through their own artistic practices.

Fantasy America echoes the current moment of political upheaval and social reckoning. Against the backdrop of nationwide protests in the wake of George Floyd’s murder by police, the Black Lives Matter movement, the COVID-19 pandemic and the presidential election, the works in this exhibition probe and challenge the perceptions of what America is and what it can become. Like Warhol, the artists in this exhibition hold a mirror to society, reflecting the country at a critical juncture in history. Each produces work that blurs the boundaries between form and material, offering a complex picture of contemporary American life.

Nona Faustine confronts modern injustices through photography centered on public monuments and civic buildings that relate to hidden African American histories. Kambui Olujimi addresses nationhood and the colonization of bodies, land, time and space, surfacing buried political pasts. Pacifico Silano collages vintage gay men’s magazines to explore love and loss in queer culture and community. Naama Tsabar uses her body and sound compositions to perform outside the boundaries of gender norms with an array of female and gender non-conforming collaborators. Chloe Wise deconstructs advertising and audience through staged narratives to reveal tenuously manufactured social contracts and constructs.

“This exhibition and the accompanying publication think about the American experience through the lens of some of the most sensational young artists and writers working during this period of transformation. They cover subject matter that includes national identity, race, gender, sexuality and society in the United States,” said José Carlos Diaz, chief curator.

Fantasy America is curated by José Carlos Diaz, chief curator at The Warhol. The exhibition includes a full-color publication with contributions from Diaz and Jessica Lanay Moore.