Multiple and One: Sebastian Duncan-Portuondo

February 1st, 12:00 am – 12:00 am

Opening Reception February 1 from 6:30-8 PM.

"Multiple and One" is a solo show of artwork by queer-identified Cuban-American artist Sebastian Duncan-Portuondo, who explores stained glass and glass mosaics through his practice. The exhibition centers on the Club EXILE project and installation, initially a response to the 2016 shooting at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, FL, whose victims were primarily queer, Latino/as. The installation features mirror mosaics, neon lights, found objects, and architectural fragments that lead to a memorial altar for the Pulse victims, created through participatory workshops. In this work, mirror mosaics reference the disco ball and the dance floor, often articulated as a sacred space for the queer community. Duncan-Portuondo’s work explores home and exile as sites for community building across identities. As the project evolved, Club EXILE became a way of thinking through exile as a space that connects multiple identities of marginalized peoples. Additional artwork in the exhibition features Duncan-Portuondo’s experimental work that maps stained glass onto the body and early artworks that use the altar-form.

*Register for our Walk & Talk event with Sebastian Duncan-Portuondo and Angelica Arbelaez!

Check back regularly for additional programming during this exhibition!

Multiple and One Digital Essay PDF

About the Artist-

Sebastian is a Miami based artist. He has exhibited artwork and created public projects in South Florida, Detroit, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, and Latin America. He frequently collaborates with artists, architects, dancers, musicians and community partners. He holds a BA in Studio Art and Latin American Studies from Swarthmore College, a BFA in Painting and Art History from New World School of the Arts, and an MFA in Fiber from Cranbrook Academy of Art.

About the Curator-

Alpesh Kantilal Patel is associate professor of contemporary art at Tyler School of Art and Architecture, Temple University, Philadelphia. His art historical scholarship, curating, and criticism reflect his queer, anti-racist, and transnational approach to contemporary art. He is the author of Productive Failure: Writing Queer Transnational South Asian Art Histories (2017) and is currently working on his monograph Multiple and One: Writing Queer Global Art Histories, under contract with Manchester University Press.

Artwork photos courtesy of the artist. Headshot photographed by Sarah Blanchette.