Stephanie Syjuco stages photographs for her “CITIZENS” series in this preview of the upcoming San Francisco Bay Area episode from Season 9 of the Art in the Twenty-First Century television series.
Drawing from the current political climate as well as from protest imagery, Syjuco dresses her portrait sitters in masks and black attire, creating composite characters that are part fiction and part reality. “Black-clad individuals are usually associated with a very direct action,” says the artist. “Is it a character that one finds problematic or is it something that might elicit even some empathy?”
Season 9 of Art in the Twenty-First Century premieres September 21 at 9:00 p.m. on PBS. San Francisco Bay Area airs September 28, 2018 at 9:00 p.m.
