USA born artist tackles political issues and creates Donald Trump artwork in Northampton

An American born artist is to hold surgery hours this week to talk about the upcoming presidential election as well as building an installation artwork.
Jessica HarbyJessica Harby
Jessica Harby

Jessica Harby is inviting questions from members to the public from Thursday April 28 to Saturday April 30.

The artwork will be on the historical and political context of Donald Trump.

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She will be at NN Contemporary Art from 11am to 6pm each day.

During her seven years living in England, American artist Jessica Harby has regularly been called upon by strangers and acquaintances to

explain or justify the political actions and cultural output of her home country.

As the current US presidential election progresses, she has been fielding increasingly urgent questions from English people wanting an explanation for controversial candidate Donald Trump’s seemingly endless popularity.

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This year she has been asked about Donald Trump as a dinner guest, on walks with her dog, and most dramatically during a seaside cliff rescue by the RNLI.

None of these venues has provided the time or environment to fully discuss such a complex and divisive issue.

While the three days in the Project Space will be giving in to what the artist sees as substantial public demand to talk about Donald Trump with an American, it will also address larger issues of home community, national identity and belonging, as well as the artist’s own feeling of discomfort at finally embracing the role of unofficial representative for such a large and diverse country.

Jessica Harby was born in 1980 in Oak Lawn, Il, USA and studied at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

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Her practice encompasses drawing, installation, film and sound and mixes the delicate, the brutal the absurd and the serious.

Solo exhibitions include Pretty Girls Doing Horrid Things, (2012) The Artist’s Sanctuary, Northampton, UK. Group exhibitions include 2016

Open Exhibition, City Gallery, Peterborough, UK; Why Do We Do This (2014) and Guests & Hosts (2012), at NN Contemporary Art, Northampton,

UK.

Her work is included in the collections of NN Contemporary Art and the National Roller Derby Museum, Glasgow, UK. Jessica is co-creator

of the zine Tappa Tappa Tappa and is a regular contributor to Rookiemag.com.

She lives and works in Northampton.

For more details on the artist visit www.jessicaharby.com.