From projects that invite you into the archives to new monuments, "Yesterday We Said Tomorrow" offers a variety of ways to engage.
Ben Davis
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The title of Prospect.5 New Orleans, this year’s long-awaited return of the city-spanning triennial art event, is “Yesterday We Said Tomorrow.” That’s a riff on a song title from local jazz star Christian Scott—but the suggestion of both promise and delay has proven prophetic, unfortunately so.
Curated by Naima J. Keith and Diana Nawi, Prospect.5 has been pushed back multiple times, first by the global pandemic (it was originally set for 2020) and then by the catastrophe of Hurricane Ida earlier this year. Nevertheless, the curators and the team behind the triennial have pressed on, settling on a phased opening that has now delivered most of the show to the city.
Some of “Yesterday We Said Tomorrow” still remains in the realm of promises, including, according to the program, planned projects by E.J. Hill and Tiona Nekkia McClodden, both set to open in coming days, and a sculpture by art star Simone Leigh, which won’t go up until early January.
But the show’s key hubs, which include the Contemporary Art Center and the Newcomb Art Museum, are fully alive with artworks. Prospect has always made an effort to implant art in venues throughout New Orleans, and this edition is no exception. Even in its incomplete state, there are enough one-off artist projects and smaller shows to make it difficult to take everything in all in one go.
Even if it I can’t provide the full picture just yet, here’s a sampling of images to give a sense of some of what Keith and Nawi’s vision looks like.
The Contemporary Art Center, New Orleans. Photo by Ben Davis.
Curator Diana Nawi explains Mark Bradford, Crates of Mallus (2020–21) at the Contemporary Art Center, New Orleans. Photo by Ben Davis.
Works by Jamal Cyrus. Photo by Ben Davis.
ektor garcia, ppportales mariposas (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Works by Hương Ngô. Photo by Ben Davis.
Works by Hương Ngô. Photo by Ben Davis.
Detail of Eric-Paul Riege, + (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Beaded curtain by Cosmo Whyte. Photo by Ben Davis.
Works by Cosmo Whyte. Photo by Ben Davis.
Film by Beatriz Santiago Muñoz. Photo by Ben Davis.
Carlos Villa, First Coat (1977). Photo by Ben Davis.
Works by Laura Aguilar and Felipe Baeza. Photo by Ben Davis.
Felipe Baeza, You have to save every piece of flesh and give it a name and bury it near the roots of a tree so that the world won’t fall apart around you (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Keni Anwar, Untitled (i am…) (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Works by Kiki Smith and Karon Davis. Photo by Ben Davis.
Karon Davis, Mary (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Kiki Smith, Skymap (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Sky Hopinka, The Island Weights (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Dave McKenzie, 831-195-G Hope (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Celeste Dupuy-Spencer, Don’t You See That I Am Burning (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Installation view of “Yesterday We Said Tomorrow” at the Ogden Museum. Photo by Ben Davis.
Beverly Buchanan, White Shacks (1987). Photo by Ben Davis.
Willie Birch, View Inside Studio with Self Portrait (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Tau Lewis, God Is King (2021) and Tree of God (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Two paintings by Jennifer Packer. Photo by Ben Davis.
Three works by Welmon Sharlhorne. Photo by Ben Davis.
Katrina Andry, Nouveau Noir. Testing Their Comfort Discovering Our Worth (2020) and None More Possessed With Feminine Beauty Than Snow(ish) White (2020). Photo by Ben Davis.
Display from “Called to Spirit: Women and Healing Arts in New Orleans,” curated by Rachel Breunlin and Bruce Sunpie Barnes as part of Prospect New Orleans. Photo by Ben Davis.
Display from “Called to Spirit: Women and Healing Arts in New Orleans,” curated by Rachel Breunlin and Bruce Sunpie Barnes as part of Prospect New Orleans. Photo by Ben Davis.
Project by Glenn Ligon. Photo by Ben Davis.
Project by Glenn Ligon. Photo by Ben Davis.
Barbara Chase-Riboud, Mao’s Organ (2007). Photo by Ben Davis.
A guest looks at Mimi Lauter, Untitled (2018). Photo by Ben Davis.
Works by Mimi Lauter. Photo by Ben Davis.
Two works from Barbara Chase-Riboud’s “Malcolm X” series. Photo by Ben Davis.
Barbara Chase-Riboud, Mandela Monument, Capetown (1996). Photo by Ben Davis.
Elliott Hundley, The Balcony (2020–21). Photo by Ben Davis.
Detail of Elliott Hundley, The Balcony (2020–21). Photo by Ben Davis.
Works from Elliott Hundley’s “Antennae” series. Photo by Ben Davis.
Works by Naudline Pierre and Ron Bechet. Photo by Ben Davis.
Naudline Pierre, Don’t You Let Me Down, Don’t You Let Me Go (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Visitors view Kameelah Janan Rasheed, Future Forms (2021), an archive related to Nkombo, a Black literary magazine published between 1968 and 1974. Photo by Ben Davis.
The final issue of Nkombo. Photo by Ben Davis.
Battleground Beacon by Nari Ward. Photo by Ben Davis.
Installation by Candice Lin. Photo by Ben Davis.
Installation by Jamilah Sabur. Photo by Ben Davis.
Outside 3162 Dauphine Street. Photo by Ben Davis.
Installation view of Sharon Hayes at 3162 Dauphine Street. Photo by Ben Davis.
Rodney McMillian at the Happyland Theater. Photo by Ben Davis.
Outside the New Orleans African American Museum. Photo by Ben Davis.
Paul Stephen Benjamin, Sanctuary (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Kameelah Janan Rasheed, Spirit (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Dineo Seshee Bopape, Master Harmonizer (lle aya, moya, la ndokh) (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
Video by Dawoud Bey at the Historic New Orleans Collection. Photo by Ben Davis.
George Dureau, Jan Becker (n.d.) installed at the Historic New Orleans Collection. Photo by Ben Davis.
Josh Kun’s Over and Over the Waves project at Historic New Orleans collection. Photo by Ben Davis.
Josh Kun’s Over and Over the Waves project at Historic New Orleans collection. Photo by Ben Davis.
Anastasia Pelias, It was my pleasure (2021). Photo by Ben Davis.
