Aaron R. Turner

Delta Voices: Artists of the Mid-South

This episode of Delta Voices: Artists of the Mid-South, we feature Aaron R. Turner, a photographer and educator based in Fayetteville, Arkansas, in conversation with Alejo Benedetti, Associate Curator of Contemporary Art at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.

Turner leads leads the Center for Photographers of Color at the University of Arkansas. He draws upon his own experiences as an artist from the Arkansas Delta to create documentary photographs recording the present and abstract photographs investigating the past.
Join Turner and Benedetti as they discuss the two main series that make up Turner's practice. In Black Alchemy, Turner creates black-and-white still life abstractions by photographing images projected on top of layered strips of paper and reflective materials. For Yesterday Once More (Family, The South), he documents his relatives and scenes of every day life in the Delta.
Delta Voices: Artists of the Mid-South highlights artists working in the Mid-South. Each episode, we ask museum curators in our region about the artists in their communities that they’re most interested in and excited about, and capture the artist in conversation about art, place, identity and community.
A video and article featuring the artist and their work is also available online. To find those, and to see more episodes and artists featured on Delta Voices, visit arkmfa.org/delta.
Delta Voices: Artists of the Mid-South’s presenting sponsor is Bank OZK. Additional support is provided by Friday, Eldredge & Clark, LLP; Judy C Thompson Trust; Barbara House; and the Andre Simon Memorial Trust Fund in memory of everyone who has died of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).