Gulfport, FL – When the Florida Department of Education released a list of nearly 700 books that were removed or discontinued from public schools during the 2023-2024 school year, multi-award-winning sculptor and activist Shelly Steck-Reale fought back, using art as a vehicle for reflection and conversation.
“The Furies, Maya” by Shelly Steck-Reale
The exhibit ‘And Still I Rise’ at Brenda McMahon Gallery in Gulfport, Florida is how Steck-Reale has continued to advance the conversation. The exhibition runs through April 30th.
Named ‘And Still I Rise’ after the recently banned poem of the same name by Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient Maya Angelou, the exhibit consists of seven sculptures of voices silenced by banned books: women, people of color, LBGBTQ+, the disabled, and immigrants, all sitting on a wood carved stack of banned books and silenced concepts.
Steck-Reale views the suppression of books as a threat to free speech, particularly voices from marginalized communities.
“Though banning books has always been part of the authoritarian nature of suppression, I see it, and my art reflects it, as a metaphor for the silencing of voices overall,” says Steck-Reale. “We are not only experiencing erasure through book banning; but voices are also being silenced through unjust legislation, outdated systems of exclusion, and Executive Orders.”
To follow updates on the events, follow @BrendaMcMahonGallery on Facebook and Instagram, or visit the gallery’s homepage at https://brendamcmahongallery.com/. Brenda McMahon Gallery is located at 2901 Beach Boulevard S in downtown Gulfport.
