Join The Fabric Workshop and Museum for a lecture by social practice and textile artist Sonya Clark, in which she will discuss the content and themes related to a duo of exhibitions currently on view in Philadelphia: Monumental Cloth, The Flag We Should Know at The Fabric Workshop and Museum and Self-Evident at the African American Museum in Philadelphia. Following the lecture, there will be a live performance by jazz trio The Onus.

Throughout her career, Sonya Clark has explored narratives inspired by material objects such as cloth, hair, combs, and currency with an unflinching look at race, material culture, and American history. As Clark explains: “Charged with agency, otherwise passive objects have the mysterious ability to reflect or absorb us. I find my image, my personal story, in an object.” Her current exhibition at FWM, Monumental Cloth, The Flag We Should Know, presents challenging questions about American history and culturethrough the investigation of flags as symbols: “Why do we know the Confederate Battle Flag instead of the Confederate Truce Flag that marked surrender, brokered peace, and was a promise of reconciliation? What would it mean to the psychology of this nation if the Truce Flag replaced the flag associated with hate and white supremacy?” Inviting viewers to consider such questions such as these, Clark’s exhibition serves as a timely catalyst for dialogue about the scars of the Confederacy and America’s ability to acknowledge and reckon with racial injustice.

Jazz clarinetist Darryl Harper founded The Onus in 1996. For more than 20 years, his ensemble has cultivated a rich repertoire of original pieces and a distinctive sound. Triphony, the ensemble’s 2005 album, topped the CMJ chart for weeks and garnered recognition in the Village Voice as one of the best albums of the year. The trio’s 2012 release, The Edenfred Files, was featured on National Public Radio’s Fresh Air with Terry Gross and made Ted Gioia’s list of best albums of the year.