Ayanah Moor: I Wish I Could Be You More Often

Ayanah Moor: I Wish I Could Be You More Often runs Feb. 10 – April 10, 2022. Moor is an artist whose work explores Blackness, gender, desire and language. I Wish I Could Be You More Often will be Moor’s first exhibition at CCMA.

“Ayanah Moor is one of the most compelling painters working in Chicago at this moment,” says CCMA curator Justin Witte. “Her dynamic works stem from her immense skill and her defiant focus on highlighting love and beauty in all of their complexity. It is an honor to present these works.”

For I Wish I Could Be You More Often, Moor will be exhibiting a collection of new paintings. Moor’s work will be hung against a backdrop of images, colors and patterns that reflect the overlapping histories and representations that inform her practice. The backdrop is composed of wall graphics, domestic objects and custom lighting elements.

Says Moor, “The poetics of Blackness and queerness are centered in my approach to painting. I often utilize representations of Black women and femmes from advertising and portraiture to locate readings of desire, myth, love, and fear. Through a process of abstraction, I explore the legibility of Blackness. What makes Blackness renderable, and by extension, what are its boundaries? My visual field includes collage as an armature of which painting navigates, contrasts, or interrupts. I am intrigued by the tension between printed matter and painterly strokes, pools, and fields of color. I view Black folks' historic and contemporary expressions of love as resistance. As an act of liberation, my artwork creates meaning from an exploration of form, color, and image.”

Ayanah Moor: I Wish I Could Be You More Often may be viewed from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesdays through Sundays, Feb. 10 - April 10. The exhibition may also be viewed one hour prior and during intermission for MAC touring performances in the Belushi Performance Hall. Admission is free and open to the public, however reserved timed tickets are required. For more information, visit TheCCMA.org.

Related Special Events: The CCMA is presenting two related events in support of the exhibition, both of which are free and open to the public. Reservations are required.

Artist Talk 

1 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 17

Ayanah Moor will be giving a tour and artist talk in the museum.

Reception and Artist Discussion 

3-5 p.m., Saturday, March 5

Join Moor as we celebrate her first exhibition at the Cleve Carney Museum of Art and participate in a discussion of her work. The discussion will be led by Dr. Sampada Aranke, Assistant Professor in the Department of Art History, Theory and Criticism at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

See Ayanah’s work here.