Through language, we produce meaning about others and ourselves. As a tool, its use is nearly universal. Yet despite commonly seeming like a neutral vehicle for communication, language has an active role in societal power dynamics that is often overlooked.  

Carrying economic and political influence, language rewards some speakers while admonishing others. Beginning in the fifteenth century, colonial powers attempted to extinguish the linguistic diversity of colonized people. Meanwhile, Indigenous populations began wielding language as a weapon of resistance. Currently, tens of thousands of native English speakers are hired each year to teach English around the globe and particularly in East Asian countries. At the same time, many dialects and Indigenous languages are shrinking in usage, indicating that increasingly fewer speakers are able to preserve those linguistic traditions. People of color continue to be subject to brutal attacks in the United States for speaking non-English languages in public. Even within the English language, there are vernacular hierarchies with racial and class implications, such as when educational expertise is conveyed through gesture, tone, and word choice.   

How do the inherent power dynamics of language affect its potential for connection and exchange? In Mis/Communication: Language and Power in Contemporary Art, artists examine issues such as how European languages remain as colonial instruments in the global south and how other languages, dialects, and linguistic practices are censured around the world.  

Featuring video, sculpture, drawing, prints, and interactive media artworks by sixteen contemporary artists, the exhibition explores spoken and written language as defined by national or cultural traditions. The artwork on view considers languages such as Korean, Spanish, Portuguese, Bété, Marra, and Zapotec as well as American Sign Language, performative body language, “academic speak,” and Artificial Intelligence’s voice recognition program.  

Guest curated by Amy Kahng, PhD student in Art History and Criticism, Stony Brook University. 

Mis/Communication is a winner of the 2020 SUNY Prize for Performance, Creation and Curation (PACC). The exhibition originated at the Paul W. Zuccaire Gallery, Stony Brook University and has been expanded for The Dorsky. It is supported by a SUNY-PACC grant from the State University of New York. 

Jisoo Chung, Museum Manners for Siri, 2016, Single channel video, 2 minutes 42 seconds, Courtesy the artist

Kim Schoen, The Horseshoe Effect, 2013, Single-channel video, 7 min loop, Courtesy the artist

Christine Sun Kim and Thomas Mader, Tables and Windows, 2016, Two channel HD video, Edition of 3, 2AP, Tables: 9 min 14 sec, Windows: 10 min 16 sec.  Courtesy of the Artists and François Ghebaly Gallery.

Installation View

Installation View

Installation View