American Crib: What's Happening? will be a bold commentary on both the resilience of underrepresented communities and the enduring need to confront the systemic forces at play in the contemporary moment. Lugo’s work is also a reminder of the power of art to start dialogues, serving as an equalizer in an increasingly polarized world.
This exhibition is a part of Radical Americana. A larger multi-location project that brings together art and culture institutions around Philadelphia. Learn more about Radical Americana here!
More than just a retrospective of Lugo’s career so far, “Evolution as Revolution” will be a deeply personal and poignant reflection on America’s socio-economic and political landscape. The exhibition will be organized into three distinct sections, each highlighting pivotal moments in Lugo’s journey with 3-4 works from those eras. This selection of work will include an installation originally created for Lugo’s 2023 exhibition “The Gilded Ghetto.”
Artist Statement
My work is intended to be a biographical narrative that tells the many stories of my life. The objects I create speak of personal subjects - my experiences with obesity, racism, and class division. I use the associations with ceramic material and forms of pottery, such as elite fine china and porcelain, to discuss these issues with humor and irony. My strongest concepts are influenced from the juxtaposition of cultural elements in the form of mass media and current events. Using historical ideology within pottery as a vehicle to introduce a modern theme is of great importance because it allows me to add more dimensions to my artwork.
Artist Bio
Roberto Lugo is a Philadelphia-based artist, ceramicist, social activist, poet, and educator. Lugo utilizes classical pottery forms in conjunction with portraiture and surface design reminiscent of his North Philadelphia upbringing and Hip Hop culture to highlight themes of poverty, inequality, and racial injustice. Lugo’s works utilize traditional European and Asian ceramic techniques reimagined with a 21st-century street sensibility. Their hand-painted surfaces feature classic decorative patterns and motifs combined with elements of modern urban graffiti and portraits of individuals whose faces are historically absent on this type of luxury item - people like Sojourner Truth, Dr. Cornel West, and The Notorious BIG, as well as Lugo’s family members and, very often, himself.
