VOL. 2 : JOSEPH COCHRAN II

October 14th - November 11th 2023

For the second iteration of Prelude, Swivel is thrilled to announce the presentation of the work Stigmatic Disease (2019) of Joseph Cochran II, accompanying the launch of Forays, Frontiers & Flags, a chronicle of the artist’s work over the last twelve years.

Diving into the depth of human condition, Joseph Cochran II confronts today’s Black America, as a place where every minute is creation, every minute the world is falling to pieces, but death is always present. Armed with a great empathy for subjects, with his practice Joseph Cochran II stages an intimate and almost diaristic visual narrative that tackles the fragility and inconsistencies of human behaviors, in relation to bigger societal and political events surrounding and aecting their life.

Stigmatic Disease (2019) depicts a man in the throes of drug abuse in Sugar Hill, Harlem. Its title derives from the term Stigmata, the plural of the Greek term Stigma, meaning mark, spot or brand. In Christian thought, the Stigmata is the manifestation of the wounds of Christ, made during his crucixion.

It also refers to the stigma drug use carries, especially for the user. “Disease” refers to the United State’s drug epidemic itself. The earliest photograph made in his return from self imposed exile in 2019, Stigmatic Disease comments on the state of America through New York City and its citizenry, many of whom still contend with the damage wrought by the War on Drugs.

The work Stigmatic Disease is one of Joseph Cochran II’s shots included in his book Forays, Frontiers & Flags, featuring a selection of photographs he took around the world over the last twelve years.

A glimpse into the development of his practice, the book weaves personal images with snapshots of various aspects of the artist’s photographic research, taking the viewer on a global journey through contemporary society. From the United States to China, Africa to Europe and more, Cochran’s work allows the viewer to place themselves in the spaces he found himself in at moments that, through sheer coincidence, were in states of instability or change. China’s rise to true global super power status and Hong Kong’s ght for freedom, the migration crisis in the Mediterranean, the chilling eects of the COVID-19 pandemic and more are shown in the book through direct and indirect imagery, along with interviews, archival documents and texts that contend with the history of our time.

"Prelude", an innovative series of capsule projects hosted at our agship location at 396 Johnson Avenue.

Forays, Frontiers & Flags is available for purchase at our gallery or online in our Store.