SMU’s Noah Simblist teams with The Modern to explore gays of color in art

By Rich Lopez

The Modern Museum of Art of Fort Worth’s current exhibit was destined to spark discussion. Glenn Ligon: America relates the artist’s stories as a gay African-American and the cultures surrounding him. With pieces that reflect his identity in both worlds, the intersection can be conflicting and glorious.
 
But that discussion takes actual form this week. Noah Simblist, an associate professor of art at SMU, will moderate a panel of speakers at Disidentification: Race, Sexuality and
 
Contemporary Art. The session explores theories behind Jose Esteban Munoz’s book Disidentifications: Queers of Color and the Performance of Politics. Including both academic and artistic panelists, Simblist is sure the talk will answer some questions and maybe ask more.
 
“We wanted to do a panel that doesn’t just focus on the racial politics, but also addressed sexuality,” Simblist says. “Sexuality manifested itself so in Ligon’s work.”
 
Simblist worked with Terri Thornton, curator of education at The Modern, to create the event. Or rather, Thornton went to Simblist for his past experience involving queer-themed art, most recently an exhibit at UT Austin focusing on artists working in perspectives of identity and gender.