Globalism, as an international economic and political movement, is made possible through technological advancements in travel and communications, shrinking the world’s geography and minimizing cultural differences. One result is an increased awareness of the randomness of distinct cultural differences—in terms of race, gender, and age—and the social laws governing individual identity. Incessantly projected and perceived on screens—phone, tablet, computer—the self is becoming increasingly fluid and fractured. Photography, experiencing its own shifts in behavior and identity through digital advancements of the past few decades, mirrors and abets globalism’s leveling hand by both documenting specific peoples and places and submitting them to the great charnel house of the internet, where context and image integrity are continually obliterated.

Co-curated by Kevin Moore, Artistic Director and Curator of FotoFocus, and Alice Gray Stites, Museum Director and Chief Curator of 21c Museum Hotels, Shifting Coordinates presents works by international artists that blur the boundaries between race, gender, age, location, and time in photographic representations of identity and the environment. Featured artists include Slater Bradley, Sebastiaan Bremer, Elena Dorfman, Elmgreen & Dragset, Pierre Gonnord, Pieter Hugo, Erwin Olaf, Robin Rhode, Viviane Sassen, and Mickalene Thomas.

Download the Shifting Coordinates Gallery Guide as a PDF.