Swivel Gallery is pleased to present Go Tell It On The Mountain, a group show curated by Alyssa Alexander. The exhibition instigates a visual investigation of the complex relationship between Black folx and their spirituality. Whether a contemporary return to African spiritual practices, a steadfast tradition of Chrisitanity - or anywhere in between - Black artists are interrogating the learned and inherited belief systems of their ancestors. With an attention to the long-standing effects of Christianity within colonial systems of power, rituals and convening, baptism and the afterlife, this exhibition brings a group of multigenerational artists together exploring these themes across painting, photography, sculpture, and multimedia installations.

The exhibition’s title references an African-American carol of the same name, traditionally sung during the Christmas season, that rejoices the birth of Jesus Christ. It also draws on James Baldwin’s homonymous 1953 novel that tells the story of a young Black queer man growing up in the Pentecostal church in depression-era Harlem, New York. Much like Baldwin’s first published work, Go Tell It On The Mountain sits in the interstitial space between the critical and the celebratory, as the institution of “church” has had a multifaceted impact on the African diaspora since the first missionaries ventured to the continent.

- Swivel Gallery Website

Photo Cred: Cary Whittier

Many thanks to our collective kin over at New Inc. who helped organize our tour, making it possible for us to gain entry to the institution at a discounted rate! If you are financially equipped to pay full price for museum entry, please consider donating the difference (or more!) to dsgnrswrkshp so we may continue our mission and programming for the 2023 year.