MARCH 4 – APRIL 22
Main Gallery
Virtual Tour available March 9
COURTNEY M LEONARD | BREACH: LOGBOOK 23 | CARRIER “Pipes” recently unloaded from the soda kiln 
COURTNEY M LEONARD | BREACH: LOGBOOK 21 | CONVOKE, October 9, 2021 – January 23, 2022 – RESEARCH COMPLETED VIRTUALLY DUE TO COVID19 CERAMIC, WOOD, ACRYLIC, VIRGINICA OYSTER INSTALLATION IMAGE OF “BREACH: LOGBOOK 21 | CONVOKE” Visual Arts Center of New Jersey, Summit, NJ | Exhibition Catalog Feature Engagement in and Dissemination of Scholarly and Artistic Work: Research for the color field study chosen for this work is in reference to a recurring event along New Jersey’s coast where the water turns tropical colors due to a gathering of elements such as a lack of river runoff due to drought, phytoplankton and algae growth, a shift in temperatures in the water and additional elements. The exhibition was curated by artist Maria Hupfield by invitation to reflect upon Natalie Diaz’s poem, published in her book, Postcolonial Love Poem, 2020. A visual complement to Diaz’s text, the work in this exhibition accepts the body as the human form of water and that the fate of water is the fate of all people. Exhibition programming included a virtual panel, and published exhibition catalogue featuring the work.
What is your first memory of water?
Courtney M. Leonard’s BREACH installation series was an annual visual logbook that explored and documented environmental impact and disparate human consequences of the relationship with water through the many definitions of the word, BREACH. In BREACH: LOGBOOK 23 | CARRIER, Leonard asked, “What is your first memory of water?” and explored the human relationship with vessels or carriers while also being vessels or carriers. She endeavored to offer the culturally and historically significant stories surrounding Minnesota’s waterways and their layers of meaning to local Indigenous communities.
Leonard, a newer and still learning, Minnesota resident, honors the practice of connection in a new Indigenous community and the humility and respect necessary to build trust. The stories of river/water relationships illuminated through her work in BREACH spring from observation and research, but also incorporate the contributions of many and required collaboration and assent.
In the main gallery, the logbook presented springs from pipes—clay pipes—as carriers of water and as carriers of a region from a time of harmony between the earth and people to one of “progress” and damage lasting for generations. Her work embraces the culture of atmospheric firing, specifically soda firing, and finds connections between salt- and soda-fired pipes and the single-fired pipes created during the introduction of infrastructure in Minnesota. Leonard’s observations are shared through clay, sound, and projection and include the voices of Minnesota Indigenous artists and storytellers.
BREACH also featured the work of Sequoia Hauck. Hauck is a queer multidisciplinary artist in the Twin Cities focused on creating theater, film, poetry, and performance art that decolonizes the process of art-making. They have seen first hand how art has the ability to inspire, connect, and build a sense of community. They make art surrounding the narratives of continuation and resiliency among their communities.
About the Artist
Courtney M. Leonard is a Shinnecock artist and filmmaker whose work explores marine biology, Indigenous food sovereignty, migration, and human environmental impact. Leonard’s current projects articulate the multiple definitions of the term breach and investigate and document Indigenous communities’ historical ties to water, marine life, and native cultures of subsistence.
Leonard earned several degrees and certificates including an associate of fine arts from Institute of American Indian Arts (Santa Fe, NM) in 2000, a BFA from New York State College of Ceramics (Alfred University, NY) in 2002, certificates of teaching from the Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning at Brown University (Providence, RI) in 2007, and an MFA in ceramics from Rhode Island School of Design (Providence) in 2008. She has received numerous awards, residencies, and fellowships, and her work is part of over 20 permanent collections, including American Museum of Ceramic Art (Pomona, CA), Crocker Art Museum (Sacramento, CA), Institute of American Indian Arts Museum (Santa Fe, NM), Shinnecock Nation Cultural Center & Museum (Southampton, NY), and Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian (New York).
Related Events
Artist/Curator Talk: Courtney M. Leonard
BREACH: LOGBOOK 23 | CARRIER and CARRIERS | COMMUNITY artist/curator Courtney M. Leonard presented an in-person talk about her work and progress. This free event took place in the exhibition space.
Public Vessel-Making Workshop
CARRIERS | COMMUNITY featured vessels created by community members as an offering. With Leonard as our guide, people explored multilayered conversations about local water practices and awareness. The work in clay culminated with the creation of vessels and other clay objects which were part of CARRIERS.