“Atmosphere” by Gary Gee is a whirlwind tour through time, space, and mental states. Simultaneously rooted in the spring of 2020 and in 1989, the exhibit employs pop culture nostalgia to emphasize the cyclical narrative of racial injustice playing in the background.

Five of the pieces in “Atmosphere,” including the show’s titular painting, were originally created as part of a larger mural project following the peak of protests against racial injustice in the U.S. last year. The nearly eight foot tall plywood panels were hung at the Symphony Orchestra. The large scale piece featured Lady Liberty, Lady Justice, and George Floyd styled as a king, in addition to quotes and stylized portraits of Black orchestra members and artists. “Power Panel Girl” and “Boy” flanked the symphony’s doors, “standing guard” over the entrance.

Panel Mural for Racial Justice: Power Panel Girl (left), Radio Raheem (right). Aerosol, enamel, acrylic on wood panel.

The panels have since been separated, with some remaining at the Symphony, some hanging in the State Museum, and the rest moving with Gary Gee around his native Indianapolis. The “Radio Raheem” panel, made with aerosol and acrylic, references the character featured in Spike Lee’s “Do the Right Thing.” He’s known in the film for carrying around a boombox, playing “Fight the Power,” Gary Gee explained to me, while wearing a graphic tee with the phrase “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” himself. The movie, which was released in 1989, when Gary Gee was a senior in high school, culminates in Raheem’s death at the hands of the police.

While there is an inherent heaviness of theme, “Atmosphere” flows through different levels. Distorted cityscapes, caricatured faces, and glow in the dark paints allow the exhibit to appear both “vibrant and ominous,” according to one viewer. Gary Gee’s use of multiple mediums, his preference throughout his life as an artist, brings depth and curiosity with aerosol, acrylic, enamel, ink and latex all finding themselves on the same piece of art.

Episode #14 “Let’s Talk About It”, Acrylic, Ink, Pastel, Water Color, Mixed Media on Canvas.

“Episode #14, Let’s Talk About It” is of this mixed media variety, as well as being a visually packed canvas. It was painted live during a virtual Community Conversation sponsored by Tea’s Me Café. This piece, in a sense, serves as the antithesis to the abstract wood panel “Atmosphere.” While aesthetically quite different, both works represent the mental state —the atmosphere— “hanging in the air,” as Gary Gee put it, regarding racial injustice, protests, and the cultural upheaval of the past year. “Episode #14” is the emotion, the pain, and the questions, aggressive and alive; “Atmosphere” is a deep, meditative breath and a much needed rest. Both are necessary.

Close-up of Panel Mural for Racial Justice: Atmosphere. Aerosol, and Acrylic on Wood Panel.

“Atmosphere” by Gary Gee will be on display in the Harrison Center’s Hank & Dolly’s Gallery for the month of July. The exhibit can be viewed in-person by appointment and in our online gallery, where all pieces are available for purchase.