Darkness Shall Cover Me, an art exhibition inspired by the night bombing raids of the First World War, to open September 24th at Fort Worth Community Art Center
A new exhibition by Katherine Akey opens September 24th at the Fort Worth Community Art Center in Fort Worth, Texas and will be on view until October 30th. The exhibition entitled Darkness Shall Cover Me explores strategic bombing in World War One. The exhibition includes a large scale cyanotype, quilted fiber pieces, and a series of paper sculptures inspired by archaeological practice.
Pilots of the First World War, the first conflict that included the air as a fighting front, were and still are often treated as noble knights fighting a gentlemanly battle high above the trenches. In truth, they were as much part of the carnage as anyone else, and their work in the First World War paved the way for the unspeakably devastating aerial campaigns of the 20th century.
The mind does not grasp horror in the abstract, which makes investigating conflict challenging. To overcome this, the works in this exhibition focus on human stories and personal reflections, bringing the messy picture of casualty figures down to relatable individual experiences. The elements of the exhibition—cyanotype, quilts, and paper sculptures—draw upon historically appropriate materials, a sense of commemoration, and emphasize a muted color palette, all with an aim to connect viewers with the lived experience of the bomber pilots and bombing victims of a century ago.
Katherine Akey is an artist and historian based in San Francisco, CA. She has an MFA in Photography from the International Center of Photography, was a Fellow with the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs with their project “The Living Legacy of World War One”, and teaches photography and art theory at the university level.
For more information, visit https://www.fwcac.com/exhibits or contact the artist directly.
Contact: Katherine Akey
Website: www.katherineakey.com
Email: kathyakey@gmail.com
