After its New York birth in September 2011, the Bay Area quickly became ground zero for the Occupy Movement.
Starting this Saturday, The Yerba Buena Center for the Arts pays homage to the local legacy with a new exhibit featuring protest art from Occupy Movements throughout the Bay.
The exhibit features 25 local artists and focuses on pieces that have been particularly effective in raising the morale of members within the movements and garnering external support. The exhibit also includes a selection of photographs and videos from significant events within the movement.
(SCROLL DOWN FOR PHOTOS)
"Attending actions of the Occupy Movement was the initial inspiration in my search for posters" Amanda Verwey, development assistant at YBCA said in a statement, "I was struck by the flood of work creating a distinct visual aesthetic that was both as diverse and somehow succinct as the movement itself."
In an attempt to connect the Occupy Movement to important Bay Area political struggles of the past, the Occupy Bay Area artworks will be displayed alongside posters from The Black Panther Party, I-Hotel in Manilatown, The ARC/AIDS Vigil at City Hall, The Free Speech Movement at UC Berkeley and the fight for Ethnic Studies Program in Universities. The exhibit asserts that all these movements are the result of a deep desire for marginalized peoples to be represented and treated fairly.
"There’s a large community of artists and graphic designers committed to social justice in the Bay Area" Betti-Sue Hertz, director of visual arts at YBCA said in a statement. "This exhibition aims to display their work in the context of earlier political activist movements in the Bay Area"
The YBCA will host an opening night party for the exhibit on Saturday that will include live music and a discussion on the value of Occupy and other social movements in contemporary society.
Scroll through the pictures below for a sneak preview of the exhibit:
