The Artist’s Voice: Leilah Babirye with Ruth Erickson

The Artist’s Voice brings artist Leilah Babirye into conversation with Ruth Erickson, the ICA’s Barbara Lee Chief Curator, for a discussion of Babirye’s sculptural practice. Babirye’s ICA exhibition centers on a queer wedding and portrays its celebrants through ceramic and carved-wood figures incorporating materials such as bicycle chains, gears, tire tubes, and other found objects.

The conversation will consider Babirye’s influences, including African sculpture and found-object art, as well as the ways her work reclaims space, identity, and community. It will also address the cultural and political oppression affecting LGBTQ+ people in Uganda, including the 2014/2023 Anti-Homosexuality Act, which criminalizes and endangers many lives.

When: Thursday, November 12

Showtime: 7 PM

Tickets: Free

Venue: Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA)

Lineup: Leilah Babirye, artist, in conversation with Ruth Erickson, the ICA’s Barbara Lee Chief Curator.

Program: An exhibition publication signing follows the talk. Copies of the publication will be available for purchase at the ICA Store.

Additional activities: Visitors can explore Babirye’s ICA exhibition, take part in Art-Making After Dark, a hands-on activity designed by the artist, and visit the waterfront Wine + Coffee Bar for a drink and light bite after the talk.