This October, American Idolatry will transform the Invisible Dog Art Center in Brooklyn into a house of worship. Throughout the week, the public will be invited to view artworks and performances, and participate in evening programs, as curated by Legacy Russell and a diverse team of up-and-coming artists, academics, and cultural producers.

The public in New York has a tradition of participating in collective gatherings and ceremonies, from the memorializing of those lost in 9/11 to tributes made to Michael Jackson. Never entirely permanent, our shrines represent triumphs, losses, and moments of realization. In addition to these physical manifestations, we mirror our beliefs in action, our bodies responding in rituals. In these rites, we signify the existence of a rubric of belief and faith within the otherwise banal everyday.

The artists of American Idolatry will make use of physical action, installation, and experimentation to assert spaces with a shrine-like religious artifice that, though constructed, will strive to function as “real” sites of idolatry, worship, and remembrance. Artists will reflect on the notion of America and American identity as influenced by pop culture aesthetic and contemporary politic. American Idolatry is proud to present the work of Danielle Abrams, CHERYL, Jonah Emerson-Bell, Ryan Frank, Danny Ghitis, Christopher Gideon, Lizzie Gill, Madeleine Hunt-Ehrlich and Diane Exavier, Sam Keller, Jason Lazarus, Maia Murphy and Eli Dvorkin, Jacqueline Hoang Nguyen, Rance Palmer, Sandra Payne, Kaitlin Kylie Pomerantz, Kenya (Robinson), and Legacy Russell.

Legacy Russell (LEGACY) is an East Village born-and-bred artist, writer, curator, and creative producer. Residing in New York City, Legacy has worked at The Bruce High Quality Foundation, the Brooklyn Museum, the Whitney Museum of American Art and The Metropolitan Museum of Art; in 2010 she was granted a six-month Curatorial Fellowship with CREATIVE TIME. Legacy is the co-founder of online journal and project space ContactProject.net (CONTACT) and was recently appointed as Art Editor of BOMB magazine’s renowned online journal, BOMBlog.

The opening party for American Idolatry will be on Saturday, October 29th, from 6 pm to 12 am. DJ’d by WOAHMONE (the legendary Nath Ann Carrera, Savannah Knoop, and Nica Ross), it will feature performances by Rance Palmer and Danielle Abrams from 7-9 pm.

Additional events will include a VIP Reception and Press Preview featuring bites by culinary darling Hannah Sullivan of Bon Appetit Magazine on October 28th, a guerrilla gala in the form of an All Saints Dinner on November 1st, Talkin’ to You is Like Droppin’ a Dime: A Discursive Walkthrough on November 2nd, Bad Feminist Readings on November 3rd, and a screening of Dancehall Queen followed by a Closing Party on November 5th. Ticket information, details about program producers, and a complete schedule of events is available at www.RecessionArtShows.com/current.

The Invisible Dog Art Center is located on 51 Bergen Street between Smith and Court streets, accessible through the Bergen F/G stops. Gallery hours will be noon to 8 pm Sunday through Thursday, and noon to midnight on Friday and Saturday.

Recession Art exists to connect emerging artists with aspiring collectors and provide an affordable and accessible alternative to the traditional art market. To learn more about Recession Art and American Idolatry visit www.RecessionArtShows.com or email [email protected]