Fantasy America

A red line going across the picture of a statue depicting a man riding a horse with another man standing next to it. — Nona Faustine, *In Praise of Famous Men No More*, 2019, Courtesy of the artist and Two Palms NY, © Nona Faustine

For immediate release

Wednesday, September 30, 2020

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.

Fantasy America is presented by Bank of America and generously supported by Artis; the Arts, Equity, & Education Fund; the Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation; The Fine Foundation, the Sheila Reicher Fine Foundation; Richard King Mellon Foundation; Joshua Hagen & Todd Kratofil; Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield and Allegheny Health Network.

Arts, Equity, & Education Fund

Richard King Mellon Foundation

The Warhol receives state arts funding support through a grant from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a state agency funded by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency; and The Heinz Endowments. Further support is provided by the Allegheny Regional Asset District.

The Andy Warhol Museum

Located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the place of Andy Warhol’s birth, The Andy Warhol Museum holds the largest collection of Warhol’s artworks and archival materials and is one of the most comprehensive single-artist museums in the world. The Warhol is one of the four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh.

Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh

Established in 1895 by Andrew Carnegie, Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh is a collection of four distinctive museums: Carnegie Museum of Art, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Carnegie Science Center, and The Andy Warhol Museum. The museums reach more than 1.4 million people a year through exhibitions, educational programs, outreach activities, and special events.

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