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Aman Mojadidi
Once Upon a Place 

CONTEMPORARY ART TOLEDO presents AMAN MOJADIDI and his newest work, Once Upon a Place 

September 15 - October 22, 2017.  

 

Currently installed in New York’s Times Square through September 5th, Once Upon a Place will be hitting the road for a US tour, but not before an exclusive run in Toledo -  thanks to our growing list of partners and sponsors!   

 

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The Artwork

 

Once Upon a Place is an interactive installation that uses phone booths to relate immigrants’ stories to the public.  Visitors enter a booth, pick up the receiver, and listen to one or more of 70 personal stories of immigration.  A phone book inside each booth details the personal histories of the story tellers and allows for guests to write their own.

 

The individuals behind the voices come from countries across the globe: China, Mexico, Burkina Faso, Tibet, and dozens more.  The artist recorded the stories over several months in hopes of creating a safe environment for immigrants to share their personal experiences and for the public to hear them.

 

Once Upon a Place was created in Residence with and commissioned by Times Square Arts .

Read about Once Upon a Place 

 

 New York Times  |  Art News |  Artnet  |  ArtForum

See videos about Once Upon a Place  

Smithsonian   |   (1) Times Square Arts   |   (2) Times Square Arts

Once Upon a Place 

 

 

The opening of Once Upon a Place and the artist’s visit coincide with Toledo’s downtown arts festival, Momentum as well as Welcoming Week, a national celebration of immigration.   

 

Installation opens to public

September 13th  - 5 pm FREE

Promenade Park 

(through October 22)

 

Artist/Student Q & A

Coffee Talk with Artist Aman Mojadidi 

September 15th  - 11:30 am FREE

University of Toledo Carlson Library

Hosted by UT's School of Visual and Performing Arts

 

Artist Talk

Borderless: Art and Migration in Troubled Times

September 17th, 2 pm -  FREE

McMaster Center, Main Library  

Talk includes a question and answer session followed by a brief public reception. Sponsored by the Roger Ray Institute for the Humanities (RRIH), this is the first of a series of free and public talks scheduled for 2017-2018. For more information on RRIH events, find them on Facebook. 


Locations

Individual booths will be installed in 3 separate areas

University of Toledo,

William S Carlson Library

2801 Bancroft St, Toledo, OH 43606 

 

Toledo Lucas County Public Library

325 N Michigan St, Toledo, OH, 43604

 

Promenade Park 

400 Water St, Toledo, OH, 43604

About the Artist

 

Working largely through site-specific projects and with degrees in Cultural Anthropology, Afghan-American artist Aman Mojadidi's work combines qualitative research, traditional storytelling, postmodern narrative strategies, and mixed-media installations to address themes such as belonging, identity politics, conflict,  historical artifacts, and migration.


Mojadidi has exhibited his work internationally including the Dhaka Art Summit 2016, 12th Havana Biennale 2015, 3rd Asia Triennial Manchester 2014, 1st Kochi/Muziris Biennale 2012, and dOCUMENTA (13) in 2012.  In 2012, he was selected as a TED Global Fellow for the subversively critical nature of his art while living in Kabul and has been featured in numerous publications.  In 2016 Vice News recorded a short documentary on his Kabul-based work.  Currently based in Paris, he continues to travel extensively implementing site-specific interventions around the world.

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© 2017 Contemporary Art Toledo  |  Toledo, Ohio

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PARTNERS & SPONSORS  

Arts Commission of Greater Toledo

Bowling Green State University School of Art

The Bounty Collegium

Mansour Wealth Management

Owens Community College

Renaissance Toledo Downtown Hotel

Royal Motors

Ahmad and Salmenna Sediqe

Hussien and Randa Shousher

Aly Sterling & Friends

Toledo Lucas County Public Library

University of Toledo College of Arts and Letters

University of Toledo Department of Art

University of Toledo Roger Ray Institute for the Humanities

University of Toledo School of the Visual and Performing Arts

Welcome Toledo Lucas County

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