Join photographer Lawrence Agyei for an artist talk on his series DRILL, on view at Blanc Gallery. The artist shares his inspiration for the series and the power of photography and community. The event includes a conversation between Agyei and Michael A. Borum, Assistant Director of the South Shore Drill Team, who reflects on what being in community with Agyei has meant for the team.
Free and open to the public.
Currently based in Chicago, Lawrence Agyei (b. 1990, Sassuolo, Italy) is a visual storyteller who draws inspiration from his cross-continental upbringing. His work is influenced by his multifaceted identity as a third-culture child, and touches upon notions of multiculturalism as a way to celebrate the juxtaposition between his Ghanaian heritage, Italian background, and life in the American Midwest. Focusing on enhancing Black culture and the beauty of its people as a whole, he blends the lexicon of documentary photography with portraiture while taking cues from fashion. Through his visual essays, he offers a genuine reading of cultural identity while capturing the beauty of the human spirit. He has had the pleasure of working with companies and publications, such as Apple, Nordstrom, Teen Vogue, Adobe, Vanity Fair, Studio Magazine, Rolling Stone, The New York Times, Google, and many other publications and brands. His work has toured internationally in the exhibition The New Black Vanguard, curated by Antwaun Sargent. Additional exhibitions include in The Promised Land at the South Side Community Art Center and Creator Labs by Google. Agyei has been featured in i-D, Soho Magazine, among several other media outlets, and has served on panels at Apple and the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco. In 2020, Agyei was ranked among the “30 New and Emerging Photographers to Watch” by i-D and in 2022 he was awarded the Booooooom Photo Book Award for his photo series DRILL.
Michael Borum performed with the South Shore Drill Team from the age of 8 to 25, serving as team captain from 1996-2004. In 2004 he received his bachelor’s degree in Business from Chicago State University. He is now Assistant Director of the team, supervising the Employment Training Program and overseeing many of the events. In April 2011, Borum led the team to the Winter Guard International World Championship.
This event is supported by Hyde Park Art Center’s Artists Run Chicago Fund in partnership with Art Design Chicago.
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An initiative of the Terra Foundation for American Art in partnership with artists and organizations across the city, Art Design Chicago is a series of events and exhibitions that highlight the city’s artistic heritage and creative communities.
