ICA San Francisco's latest exhibition Resting Our Eyes questions the true meaning of luxury through a Black feminist lens.
Within the last decade, the term “self-care” has evolved from a specific set of practices to a liberally used cover-all that applies to anything that makes us feel good: sheet masks, a make-up routine, meditation, a night cap. But while no self-care practice is inherently better than another, for Black women the concept resonates differently. Care for ourselves is also care for our community. Even practices as innocent as hair care were once criminalized by sumptuary laws like the Tignon Laws in 18th century New Orleans, which forced Black women to cover their heads in an effort to suppress any outward display of “luxury.”
In the ICA San Francisco’s latest exhibition, “Resting Our Eyes,” curators Tahirah Rasheed and Autumn Breon examine the notions of leisure and adornment through the lens of 20 multi-generational Black artists including LaKela Brown, Adana Tilman, Carrie Mae Weems and Mickalene Thomas. The exhibit features art across a selection of mediums including neon sculpture, collage, photography, paintings, and textiles.
