An Space for Discussion About Injustice

The year was 2023 and the topic of Science Gallery Atlanta’s annual exhibition was to be nothing less than justice. The saliency was in the air. But how to bring multiple perspectives on an abstract topic under one gallery ceiling, and how to be equitably representative — as well as equitably provocative — would require astute, brave curation and peak sensitivity in exhibit design. Furthermore, this is Science Gallery, so our mission is, as ever, to bring a multitude of artists together, help them do their best work, and work the magic to create a cohesive, impactful, inspiring experience for as wide an audience as is imaginable. That, of course, has become Flutter & Wow’s signature.

A national roster of a dozen artists and collectives were curated. We brought in a city bus, and gave artists power to decorate it, we erected billboards indoors, and built homeless shelters. We helped visualize data in sculpture and designed and fabricated custom furniture. We designed and built a pop-up coffee shop where the justice of the coffee supply chain was put on display. We built a stage and multiple areas for performance, as well as a meeting and workshop space and a library.

The result was a colorful, dynamic, and popular exhibition, that brought a wide range of visitors through the doors with astonishingly varied programming. The experience was cohesive but the topic so big, so multi-faceted, and of such universal importance, that what it succeeded at best was inspiring people to look out beyond it, and ponder how to increase justice in the world.

Photos by Bita Honarvar