Bad Outdoorsmen (Episode 3)
by Katie Hargrave and Meredith Laura Lynn

presented by Vinegar in partnership with the Ruffner Mountain Nature Coalition and The Old Bailey Gallery

November 2 – 30, 2024

This exhibition, Bad Outdoorsmen (Episode 3) exists in two locations in Birmingham, Alabama: Ruffner Mountain Nature Preserve and The Old Bailey Gallery.

In an outdoor display at Ruffner Mountain Nature Preserve, Hargrave and Lynn have placed a ghillie-textured photographic panel featuring landscape stills from the tv show “Alone.” The panel is camouflaged in Ruffner’s habitat, away from important vistas that might normally be captured through selfies and Instagram-able imagery while also sticking out like a sore thumb through imagery and color. The humble placement emphasizes that connections to nature can happen anywhere, for anyone, not just in the more dramatic locations often captured by famous, white male photographers. In the visitor center, Hargrave and Lynn share photos of themselves in ghillie suits and videos created with footage that the artists shot at the nature preserve.

Meanwhile, at The Old Bailey Gallery, Hargrave and Lynn present an indoor installation that references Ruffner Mountain. This work features more ghillie-textured photographic panels alongside television screens displaying the video from Ruffner Mountain. 

This exhibition is curated by Vinegar’s Melissa Yes.

In Katie Hargrave and Meredith Laura Lynn’s ongoing series Bad Outdoorsmen, the artists analyze the History Channel reality TV show “Alone” in the context of the history of mainstream conservation efforts in the US. Through video and sculptural installation, they attempt (and fail) to camouflage themselves into the landscape. While outdoorsmen believe they can become one with nature, often claiming they are able to have mastery over wilderness, they also fail. This failure is highlighted in this body of work, questioning why the myth of the outdoorsmen survives in contemporary culture. As a result, Hargrave and Lynn hope to create space for other identities (such as women, youth, and people of color) to feel capable and comfortable in the outdoors. Read more about this project here.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Artists Katie Hargrave and Meredith Laura Lynn frequently collaborate to unpack the complex narratives that unfold around so-called public land. They engage local communities and ecosystems through site-responsive works in sculpture, photography, paper, and video.

Katie Hargrave (b. 1985 Chicago, resides Chattanooga, TN) is an artist and educator based in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Her work investigates how material culture might provide a lens into the U.S. politics and environmental movements, both past and present. She makes projects using a variety of forms — installations, publications, videos, fiber works, and interactive experiences. Hargrave holds an MFA from the University of Iowa, MA from Brandeis University, and a BFA from the University of Illinois. Recent exhibitions include a solo exhibition at the Gadsden Museum of Art (2022, Gadsden, AL) and Granary Arts (2021, Ephraim, UT) as well as selected group exhibitions at The Knoxville Museum of Art (2023, Knoxville, TN), Utah Museum of Contemporary Art (2023, Salt Lake City, UT), Alabama Contemporary (2021, Mobile, AL), and Atlanta Contemporary Art Center (2021, Atlanta, GA). Recent residencies include the Utah State University Outdoor Recreation Archive (2023), Illinois State University (2023), and Crisp-Ellert Art Museum (2022). She has received numerous grants, including the Puffin Foundation, Tennessee Arts Commission, CERF+, amongst others. She collaborates frequently with Meredith Laura Lynn, and she was a member of the collaborative groups “The Think Tank that has yet to be named” and " Like Riding a Bicycle.” Follow Katie on Instagram here. 

Meredith Laura Lynn is an artist, curator, and educator based in Tallahassee, FL. Through her creative and scholarly projects, she researches the impacts of climate change and land management and ownership. Her work has recently been shown at the Knoxville Museum of Art (Knoxville, TN), Morris Graves Museum of Art (Eureka, CA), House Guest (Louisville, KY), Austin Peay University (Clarksville, TN), the Wiregrass Museum (Dothan, AL), and the Alexander Brest Gallery at Jacksonville University. She has been an artist in residence at the Jentel Foundation (Sheridan, WY), Kimmel Harding Nelson (Nebraska City, NE), and Signal Fire (Portland, OR). Her curatorial projects have been supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Florida Division of Cultural Affairs, the Indiana Arts Commission, and the Minnesota State Arts Board. She is the curator of the Museum of Fine of Arts at Florida State University where she is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Art. Follow Meredith Laura on Instagram here.

ABOUT THE HOSTING COLLABORATORS

The Ruffner Mountain Nature Coalition preserves and cares for Ruffner Mountain as a sanctuary for its neighbors, native plants, and animals. It comprises 1,038 acres of biodiverse urban forest and connects the communities of East Lake, Irondale, Roebuck Springs, and Greater Birmingham through 14 miles of trails, nature education and EcoArts programs, and of course, a love of wilderness and wildlife. Ruffner integrates research, restoration, and conservation into its educational and recreational programs. Follow them on Instagram here.

The Old Bailey Gallery hosts exhibitions and artist residencies in the Crestwood North neighborhood of Birmingham, Alabama. These residencies have supported local, national, and international artists. Additionally, curator Dan Bailey supports Birmingham’s creative ecosystem through collaborations with local organizations, presenting exhibitions and programs by local arts organizations such as Studio By The Tracks. Follow them on Instagram here.

Vinegar is a non-profit organization that curates expanded art projects in Birmingham, Alabama. Vinegar believes that experimental and noncommercial art practices have heightened capacities to challenge and uplift our community. Their exhibitions emphasize unconventional formats: installation, video, new media, performance art, and social practice. Vinegar pays every artist a fair wage for their creative labor. Follow us on Instagram here.

Curator Melissa Yes is an American busy with media consumption and production. She was born in Texas, raised in Alabama, and educated in Ohio, where she earned an MFA in Sculpture and Expanded Practice from The Ohio State University. After completing the degree in 2017, Yes returned to her home state where she works as the Assistant Professor of Digital Media in the Department of Art and Art History at The University of Alabama. Her recent honors include an Alabama State Council on the Arts Media/Photography Fellowship and an award from the Verdant Fund, a re-granting program of the Andy Warhol Foundation. Yes curates and exhibits with a national scope while prioritizing projects that connect to communities in Alabama. Her roles as artist, curator, teacher, and neighbor work in concert with one another. Follow her on Instagram here.