Bruce Silverstein is pleased to present a contemporary rendition of Rosalind Solomon’s 1988 exhibition, Portraits in the Time of AIDS. Exhibited at New York University’s Grey Art Gallery at the height of the AIDS epidemic, this historic show was comprised of seventy-five over sized portraits tacked to the wall at or above the viewer’s height—some rather shocking and unabashed depictions of the ravaging symptoms of this illness.
This exhibition prompted much debate regarding the polemical nature of depicting persons with AIDS as visibly ill, physically weakened, doomed, at a time when the general public and media were terrified, grappling with the nature of the illness and its effect on American society. Additionally, locating the work within the context of fine art as opposed to the documentary, the project incurred further criticism, namely for its prioritizing the artist’s creative and aesthetic interests over those of her sitters. Yet, it is important to note, all of those photographed gave their permission to be a part of Solomon’s project, trusting in art’s communicative power.