HUQ: I Seek No Favor

HUQ: I Seek No Favor

Huq: I Seek No Favor* is a group exhibition that brings together the select voices of over 100 artists, writers, and thinkers in a collective response to Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Collective, the 2022 Supreme Court decision that eliminated the constitutional right to abortion established by Roe v. Wade in 1973. Emblematic of the misogyny that continues to permeate discussions of reproductive rights in the United States, Dobbs is a direct attack on women’s autonomy and agency over their own bodies and lives. 

Overcome with anger and disbelief in the wake of this decision, artist and curator Ashima Yadava took inspiration from Chilean poet Cecilia Vicuña’s declaration “Tu rabia es tu oro” (your rage is your gold). Yadava divided the 213-page Dobbs opinion into 50 sections and assigned each section to one of a diverse group of 50 artists, who then created something entirely new from the pages they were given. In 2023, their works appeared in a special-edition publication, also titled Huq: I Seek No Favor, that marked the beginning of a dialogue—one that calls for ongoing resistance and empowerment in the face of a system that perpetuates historical inequities and seeks to use women’s bodies as a tool of their own oppression.

This exhibition continues that dialogue. Rooted in defiance and multicultural solidarity, Huq: I Seek No Favor features selections from the original 50 works, as well as new contributions from subsequent collaborators and pieces created by members of the public. The included works reflect and embody the experiences of those most impacted by the overturning of Roe v. Wade. This is artwork that speaks back to power and demands to be heard. Huq: I Seek No Favor positions art as a medium of collective resistance and encourages direct engagement with urgent social issues. Programming includes community readings, teach-ins, and a panel discussion. 

*Huq is an Urdu/Arabic word meaning rights and also truth and the phrase “I seek no favor” is taken from Audre Lorde’s poem “A Woman Speaks.”

Artists: Pamela Sneed, Adama Delphine Fawundu, Justine Kurland, Ranu Mukherjee, Aspen Mays, Meena Hasan, Jennifer Calivas, Shara Mays, Chitra Gopalakrishnan, Kat Contreras, Tara Pixley, Marcy Palmer, Lelio Mukherjee Maurillo, Simone Mukherjee Maurillo, Sunil Mukherjee Maurillo, Ashima Yadava, Zakia Afrin, Ann Le,  Kiana Honarmand, Aline Smithson, Larisa Usich, Naeemeh Naeemaei, Dani Lessnau, Pamela Ybañez, Ebti, Hargun Mann, Maya Varadaraj, Parikha Mehta, Salma Arastu, Eliza Gregory, Na Omi Judy Shintani, and Rachel Phillips.

Register for our 2nd Saturday reception here.