The Shed presents three distinct yet interrelated new commissions in an exhibition that explores social and cultural confrontations and alliances. Collision/Coalition pairs new work by artists Tony Cokes and Oscar Murillo with screenings of a new documentary film about artist Beatriz González, directed by Yanina Valdivieso and Vanessa Bergonzoli. The commissions are on view in The Shed’s Level 4 Gallery.

Tony Cokes (b. 1956, Richmond, Virginia) lives and works in Providence, Rhode Island. Cokes creates video works in a recognizable style that piece together found footage or solid-color slides, animated quoted text, and pop music. He offers social critiques by quoting a range of sources including philosophers, musicians, activists, comedians, and other cultural figures. His works often include archival footage, images from Hollywood films, textual commentary, voiceovers, and popular music.

Oscar Murillo (b. 1986, La Paila, Colombia) is a multidisciplinary artist who works in painting, drawing, sculpture, video, installation, interventions, and performance. In exploring the conditions of contemporary globalization, Murillo considers the movement and use of people, things, and ideas. In 2019, Murillo was nominated for the prestigious Turner Prize.

Photographs by Corrado Serra.

“Collision/Coalition asks ,‘What is the role of art in the face of political, social, and economic power?’” said Emma Enderby. “The Shed is a place for conversation and reflection and by interconnecting three distinct commissions and angles—Tony Cokes, Oscar Murillo, and Yanina Valdivieso and Vanessa Bergonzoli’s documentary on Beatriz González’s work—questions are raised on art’s agency and relationship to capital, on its power to succumb or to subvert.”

Collision/Coalition is organized by Emma Enderby, Senior Curator, with Adeze Wilford, Curatorial Assistant.