The Luce Center is pleased to present Paradise Lost: The Art of Siona Benjamin, on display in the Dadian Gallery from February 13 to April 6, 2024. Anchored by the artist's dynamic installation, Exodus: I See Myself in You, this exhibition brings together iconic works from across Benjamin’s oeuvre to explore questions around the human pursuit of paradise—the elusive, alluring notion of an ideal permanent home—in an age of forced migration and displacement.

About the Artist

Siona Benjamin’s unique perspective as an Indian-American-Jewish artist inspires her to create art that represents her transcultural and multicultural narrative. Often featuring blue figures and vibrant colors, she illuminates cultural and religious symbols through various media. A two-time recipient of the prestigious Fullbright Fellowship, Siona has exhibited her work in galleries, museums, and sacred spaces around the world. She creates artworks for private and public spaces, and shares her story through speaking engagements.

Sacred Ground is an art exhibition that explores the deep connection of what it means to be a spiritual creator, an artist, and a child of God. Comprised of 14 Baltimore-based artists, Sacred Ground represents each artists' intersection of art and spirituality.

Co-curated by Jessie Houff and Sarah McCann .

Travel and displacement are recurring themes in the work of Güler Ates, who was born in Muş, Eastern Turkey, where she belonged to the oppressed Zazaki-speaking minority.  Ates’ multidisciplinary work explores a constellation of themes, including diasporic experience, the ambiguities of domestic space, and the legacies of colonialism.  Drawing upon her own experiences of displacement, Ates has collaborated extensively with members of immigrant and refugee communities.  She is inspired by both Sufi and Alevi religious and cultural traditions.

“I am in league with devils. I feel like an archaeologist sifting through the sands of time to uncover the old stories, the old myths, the old beliefs on which modern believers act…In my most recent bodies of work, I have reveled in the queerness—seen as devilish by modern religions—in my character.  I have bathed in the spirit of the ancients. Marduk and Thor, Brigit and Ra, Janus and Seth are only a few of the now mythologized gods of old. They are no longer held in the respect they were, but does that stop them from being gods? Is it simply time that morphs a god into a myth, and if so what of the current gods, and devils? Will they too just become stories told around a camp fire?” — Michael Petry

Antonio McAfee addresses the complexity of representation by manipulating historical portraits, both formally and thematically. He often draws from African American history, from 19th century washerwomen to twentieth century funk icons, creating photographic collages with a haunting, tactile presence.

The Luce Center is proud to exhibit Stations of the Cross in the Oxnam Chapel, a series of 14 bold interpretations of this traditional theme by Alfonse Borysewicz. The artist often takes inspiration from theology, liturgy, and scripture, inspired by his Catholic faith. Over the course of his career, Borysewicz has created an impressive body of work that hangs not only in galleries and private collections but churches, monasteries and seminaries from Brooklyn to Grand Rapids.

Designed by the Luce Center’s community arts coordinator, this immersive installation invited visitors to experience personal and communal restoration in a shared sacred space set apart for prayer, reflection, and renewal.

Co-curated by UK filmmaker Julia Alcamo and DC curator Taylor Curry, this exhibit brought together artistic contributions from across the globe to shine a light on intersecting struggles for public health and racial equality.

Cheryl Agulnick Hochberg’s works on paper are based in travel, craft, and the act of paying attention. An immersive soundscape accompanied the six large-scale drawings and two wood cut prints in the gallery.

Steve Prince’s relief prints on paper candidly explore American history through the lens of faith, family, race, power and love.

Informed by the artist’s study of the Bible, these sculptures, paintings and monoprints are visual reflections on the wisdom contained within this ancient collection of sacred texts.