Ja'Tovia Gary, Quiet as it's kept, 2023, single channel video installation, 26 minutes, 16:9 aspect ratio, stereo sound; Admiral refrigerator with dried marigolds; diner chairs, overall dimensions variable. © Ja’Tovia Gary. Courtesy Paula Cooper Gallery, New York. Photo: Steven Probert Studio
April 12–August 9, 2026
Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia
As Philadelphia and the nation prepare to mark the 250th anniversary of the United States, Freedom Dreams brings together powerful works by Arthur Jafa, David Hartt, Garrett Bradley, Ja’Tovia Gary, and Tourmaline that explore history, archives, and cultural memory.
The exhibition features Gary's Quiet as it's kept (2023), a contemporary response to The Bluest Eye, Toni Morrison’s first novel published in 1970. The film is an intimate bricolage of vintage Hollywood, direct animation, original Super 8 and 16mm film footage, and documentary conventions.
Related Event
Barnes Cinema: Ja’Tovia Gary Retrospective
Saturday, July 11, 1 – 4pm
On the occasion of the exhibition, three films by Ja’Tovia Gary will be screened, followed by a short lecture and conversation with writer and editor Niela Orr.