Betye Saar
Frieze New York Spotlight
UCLA alumna Betye Saar (B.A '49) is known for her assemblages. Her work mixes surreal, symbolic imagery with a folk art aesthetic, exploroing mysticism, history, memory, and nostalgia. This weekend, at Frieze New York, Roberts Projects will present a selection of Saar's work organized around her participation in the festival FESTAC ‘77.
Don't miss Betye Saar at Roberts Projects and view this guide for more UCLA Arts alumni and faculty who will be represented at Frieze New York.
Find more UCLA Arts happenings in New York this weekend here.
"Roberts Projects presents a selection of the artist’s work organized around her participation in the festival FESTAC ‘77. The exhibition highlights how, inspired by her FESTAC journey, Saar’s assemblages and collages from the period investigate concepts of the ritual, community, inherited traditions, and how objects retain the histories of their owners. Betye Saar: FESTAC ‘77 will be conceived and designed by the 91 year-old artist.
FESTAC ‘77, or the Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture, was a major international arts festival held in Lagos, Nigeria in 1977. In terms of scale and ambition, FESTAC ‘77 had no precedent. The month-long event showcased internationally a wide range of African fine art, literature, drama, dance, and music. 16,000 participants, representing 56 African and African Diaspora nations and countries, performed; the American delegation included artists Betye Saar, Samella Lewis, Faith Ringgold, Barkley Hendricks, and Noah Purifoy. Despite its historical importance, Festac ‘77 remains relatively unknown.
Saar’s participation was part of a new, vigorous interest in the political potentialities that crystallized during the U.S. Black Arts Movement. The festival provided a forum for diverse contributions divesting from European-derived aesthetics and thematics, representing a broadening of focus within Afrodiasporic studies."— Frieze New York
See more UCLA Arts alumni and faculty—both current and former—represented at Frieze New York here.
Find more UCLA Arts happenings in New York this weekend here.
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