Sask. artist reconsiders U.S. travel after D.C. museum exhibition including his work cancelled abruptly
Zachari Logan had a sculpture in a show cancelled by Art Museum of the Americas
Zachari Logan often visits the U.S. for art exhibitions featuring his work, but the Regina artist is reconsidering travel plans after an American museum cancelled a show he was in — a decision he sees as linked to President Donald Trump's orders targeting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
A ceramic sculpture made by Logan was set to appear in an exhibition at the Art Museum of the Americas (AMA) in Washington, D.C., but the AMA cancelled the show mere weeks before it was set to open.
"I think it's because museum staff were rightly worried for their own jobs and for the institution losing its funding," Logan said on CBC's The 306 in an interview with host Peter Mills.
"The rhetoric coming out of the White House is deplorable ... and I just don't feel personally safe being in the United States at this time. I do have projects that I have decided not to travel to the U.S. for."
The multi-artist show "Nature's Wild" centred themes of queer sexuality and love woven through the personal history of Andil Gosine, a Canadian artist and York University professor who commissioned works from other artists for the show. It's the second exhibition the museum nixed in a month.
Logan made a ceramic crown of flowers native to Trinidad and Tobago, where Gosine grew up. The exhibition is inspired by Gosine's book Nature′s Wild: Love, Sex, and Law in the Caribbean.
Logan's work is held in public and private collections across across the world, including the National Gallery of Canada, and he frequently exhibits drawings, ceramics and installation pieces in solo and group shows, including Saskatoon's Remai Modern.
He echoed the concerns of others about U.S. arts and culture institutions self-censoring to avoid the ire of Trump and his anti-DEI policies, similar to what's happening with scientists and academic researchers.
"It appeared to be related to a Trump executive order and I think also something that was definitely preemptive," Logan said. "It was shocking."
The AMA features modern and contemporary works from Latin American and Caribbean artists, and is run by the Organization of American States, which received $55 million from the U.S. last year.
The AMA also cancelled a long-planned exhibition featuring art about the transatlantic slave trade and the African diaspora. In the works for years, the "Before the Americas" exhibition was nixed less than two months before the scheduled opening in March.
Works from the Nature's Wild exhibition will eventually be shown at galleries and museums in Canada.
Logan said he's reconsidering his U.S. travel plans for upcoming shows, including one in Texas.
"It will definitely affect my relationship to the U.S. and hopefully it's not long term," he said. "It's definitely shifting the way that I'm thinking moving forward."
Earlier this month, Ottawa updated its travel advisory for Canadians visiting the U.S., warning citizens to expect extra scrutiny from U.S. Border Patrol agents, including having cellphones seized and contents downloaded.
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With files from The 306