Cleaster Cotton: “Evocation” opening reception

Evocation is presented in colorful, poignant, contemporary primitive, acrylic and mixed media paintings. Photography and collage are incorporated into narratives, portraits and vignettes. Cotton triggers memory, stirs the blood and creates a pensive mood that engages the macabre. She depicts snapshots from America’s relentless history of racism and violence, privilege and oppression, its legacy of slavery and subjugation, white supremacy and tyranny. “Evocation is as visceral as it is cerebral. This exhibit reflects the blatant and subliminal ‘stuff’ that consistently fosters PTSD in my life… in so many lives… on a daily basis.” –Cleaster Cotton