Prospect.4: The Lotus in Spite of the Swamp

Accompanying the international triennial Prospect New Orleans, this book features work by 73 artists and arts collectives illustrating transcultural connections through contemporary art. The fourth iteration Prospect.4: The Lotus in Spite of the Swamp, evokes New Orleans’s natural environment—surrounded by bayous, lakes and wetlands near the mouth of the Mississippi River—and alludes to the city’s unique cultural landscape as a creative force. By positioning itself in the city of New Orleans, the Prospect triennial aims to echo the city’s history of cross-cultural fertilization. From Creole culture to jazz, in waves of migration and colonization, and as the American South’s largest port, New Orleans is truly a cultural and historic nexus. Prospect.4 relies on New Orleans’s richly hybrid character to offer a diverse and exhilarating panoply of new and exciting art. Contributors include Trevor Schoonmaker, William Cordova, Miranda Lash, Omar Lopez-Chahoud, Wangechi Mutu, Filipa Oliveira, Ebony G. Patterson, Ylva Rouse, Ned Sublette, Zoe Whitley, with additional contributions from more than 40 local, national, and international curators and writers.

Trevor Schoonmaker is Artistic Director of Prospect.4. He is also Chief Curator at the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina.