Degrees of Separation

How best to orchestrate a two-year conversation between Louisiana and France? We shudder at the potential long-distance phone charges.

Leave it to artists to find a creative solution then. Ann Connelly Fine Art Gallery in Baton Rouge and Arnaudville’s NUNU Arts Collective have reached across the Atlantic to partner with Les Articulteurs in Redon, France, for an interactive, interdisciplinary cultural exchange culminating in two art exhibits—one in France and the other in far-west Marfa, Texas.



From October 2014—October 2016, Degrees of Separation is linking four visual artists (David Humphreys, Lisa diStefano, Jill Hackney, and George Marks) and four literary artists (Darrell Bourque, Patrice Melnick, Clare L. Martin, and Chanceller “Xero” Skidmore) from Louisiana with a coordinating octet in France’s Bretagne region, all aiming to produce works focused on sustainable, environmentally kind practices; under that umbrella, you’ll find the interwoven realms of ecology, economics, politics, and culture. 



Each exhibited work has a similar foundation: a photograph, selected from a pool of documentary photographic works provided by Louisiana artists Brian Baiamonte, Frank McMains, and John Slaughter, as well as French artist Myriam Jégat.



Degrees of Separation budded into existence two years ago, when artist Jill Hackney was vacationing with her husband Philip in Marfa. There they stayed at the Arcon Inn, owned by Rudy and Mona Garcia. “Mona had started a non-profit called the International Woman’s Foundation,” said Hackney. “When she realized I was an artist, she offered me an exhibit in the foundation’s space.” The space happened to be Building 98 at Fort D.A. Russell, a former military base. Thea structure which formerly housed bachelor officer quarters, an officers club, and a grand ballroom.



Hackney asked instead if she could curate a show in Building 98; soon she recruited friends and artists George Marks and Lisa DiStefano for an exhibit of landscapes geo-tagged with the GPS coordinates of each work’s inspiring locale. Hackney dubbed the show Degrees of Separation. “With everything named by coordinates, people could go on their phones, plug in these numbers, and see where these paintings were inspired. It would give people an interactive experience and a way to relate to the paintings.”



Hectic schedules gave the show a target opening date of two years in the future. And that intervening time brought Semaine Française d’Arnaudville, NUNU’s annual six-day cultural summit focused on creative placemaking and its economic effects.



In watching the partnership between NUNU and Les Articulteurs, a collective out of Bretagne that brings a cultural mindset to economic development similar to that of NUNU, Hackney began to brainstorm. “Here’s an opportunity,” she told her fellow attendees. “I’m working on a show called Degrees of Separation. It makes sense to tie all of this together. The theme doesn’t have to change; it all makes sense.”



It’s the separation between continents, between the cultures of France and French Louisiana, between one artist’s photograph and another’s painted or written interpretation. 



But ultimately, Degrees brings people closer. “I wanted the show to be very modern and accessible,” said Hackney. For those who won’t make the dusty road trip out to Marfa—or the voyage abroad to Bretagne—all the works will be posted online.



And as the planning for Degrees has already shown, two years can bring a wealth of change. “We’re hoping to pull in new artists. The show will evolve. That’s the exciting thing about it,” said Hackney, who expects the show to tour from its original establishments, taking on new works and updating its online presence as need be.

Bridge the gap and follow the evolution of the show, which opens on October 5, at degreesofseparation.org.