REVIEW
“Art AIDS America” in Review
By Sarah Olivo
December 15, 2015
Brett Reichman, And the Spell Was Broken Somewhere Over the Rainbow, oil on canvas, 1992
The exhibition is one of magnitudinal depth with transmitting hope of a reconception of who we are now and what we were then. Each piece could be considered a prayer, one of hope, memory, forgiveness and acceptance.
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One large brightly rainbow-colored canvas from Brett Reichman titled, “And the Spell was Broken Somewhere Over the Rainbow“ (1992) is an image of swinging clocks to symbolize the relentlessness of time, it’s fleeting nature and the title as an homage to gay icon Judy Garland during the political persecution of AIDS patients. This piece was made in San Francisco where the lesbian community came together to care for their “othered” comrades.
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The exhibition is one of magnitudinal depth with transmitting hope of a reconception of who we are now and what we were then. Each piece could be considered a prayer, one of hope, memory, forgiveness and acceptance. With some works listing the date of birth followed by the date of death, the fragility yet strength of human experience has never been more apparent. The exhibitions message stretches across politics, sex, religion, loss, and beauty to share the ongoing impact and how artists have become the architects of change when sharing an experience that has been made to shed so much shame, hatred, and exclusion on their existence.