James Allister Sprang: Rest Within the Wake

Artist Talk: 11:30-1pm
Michael Jaharis Recital Hall 

Rest Within The Wake
Tea Reception: 6:30 pm, Jaharis Lobby
Listening Session and Q&A: 7-8:30pm

Michael Jaharis Recital Hall

Students, faculty, and the public are welcome to attend two events – an artist talk and a listening session – with visual, sound and performance artist James Allister Sprang. In collaboration with the Music Department, the Department of Environmental Studies will welcome Sprang for an artist talk in the Jaharis Recital Hall. 

Later that evening, Sprang will lead us in a listening session of his 2023 audio work, Rest Within the Wake, a 45-minute “sensory poem for the spirit,” which was composed 60 feet beneath the surface of the Caribbean Sea. The work is intimately tethered to the formative text In the Wake, by Christina Sharpe; Black Interior, by Elizabeth Alexander; and Inciting Joy, by Ross Gay. 

Join us for a tea reception at 6:30, followed by a listening session and Q&A with the artist from 7-8:30 pm in the Jaharis Recital Hall.

About the Artist

The son of Caribbean immigrants, James Allister Sprang is an artist, technologist and researcher who considers his relationship to Diasporic timelines while weaving together his multimedia work. This work is informed by the Black interior as well as radical and experimental traditions. Sprang’s work lives in gallery spaces, theater spaces and the space between the ears. He has taught at the Cooper Union, The University of Pennsylvania and Maine College of Art & Design.

In 2022, Sprang was awarded both the Pew Fellowship and the Knight Foundation Art + Tech Fellowship for his work with one of two 4DSOUND systems in America. This system has been called, "the world's most advanced sound system" as it allows for sonic holograms to be choreographed through space. James has exhibited at The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, The Brooklyn Museum, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts Museum, Storm King Art Center, The Kitchen, Baryshnikov Arts, The Institute of Contemporary Art at Maine College of Art & Design, The Public Theater, TATE Modern (UK), and MONOM (Germany), among many others. His work has been reviewed in publications such as ArtForum, Art in America and Art Papers. He is based in Philadelphia.