Violette Bule's 'Hydra' at Artpace San Antonio Examines Systems of Control
Violette Bule's exhibition 'Hydra' at Artpace San Antonio, running until July 19, 2026, employs razor wire, surveillance mirrors, and video to address issues surrounding mass incarceration and immigrant detention. The installation includes a dual-directional golden turnstile, six screens that initially show affirming words before shifting to negative labels such as 'perpetrator' and 'criminal,' and video clips of past presidents from Nixon to Obama, with the current president's voice superimposed. Previously, Bule performed 'In-Relation' as part of Nameless Sound's 'They, Who Sound' concert series at Lawndale in Houston. Between 2010 and 2012, she taught photography in Venezuelan prisons, which inspired her razor wire use. In 2024, she revisited over 3,500 photographs from those workshops during a residency at the Visual Arts Center at the University of Texas at Austin. Her upcoming project, 'Being for Others,' will focus on intergenerational storytelling and is set for San Antonio, with a possibility of extending to Laredo. Originally from Venezuela, Bule divides her time between New York and Houston.
Key facts
- Violette Bule's installation 'Hydra' is on view at Artpace San Antonio through July 19, 2026.
- The installation features a golden turnstile that turns both ways, contrasting with typical subway turnstiles.
- Razor wire is used as a material, rendered into decorative garden-like patterns.
- Six screens display words of affirmation that later switch to negative terms like 'perpetrator,' 'vagrant,' and 'criminal.'
- Video footage of past presidents from Nixon to Obama is shown with the current president's voice overdubbed.
- 18 round surveillance mirrors are included in the installation.
- Bule taught photography in Venezuelan prisons between 2010 and 2012.
- In 2024, she revisited the archive of over 3,500 photographs from those workshops during a residency at the Visual Arts Center at the University of Texas at Austin.
- Her performance 'In-Relation' was part of Nameless Sound's 'They, Who Sound' concert series at Lawndale in Houston.
- Her next project 'Being for Others' is a participatory, site-responsive work planned for San Antonio and potentially Laredo.
Entities
Artists
- Violette Bule
- Michele Brangwen
- Nixon
- Obama
Institutions
- Artpace San Antonio
- Nameless Sound
- Lawndale
- Visual Arts Center at the University of Texas at Austin
- GEO Group
- Glasstire
Locations
- San Antonio
- Texas
- Houston
- New York
- Venezuela
- Austin
- Laredo
- United States