“When I started thinking about doing pieces using the word America, they really came out of thinking about Dickens’ Tale of Two Cities and the opening chapter of that book, ‘it was the best of times it was the worst of times’.”

--Glenn Ligon

Like a beacon in the dark, the glowing neon of “AMERICA” draws you in. While the word “AMERICA” is usually associated with freedom, Glenn Ligon complicates this notion by inverting the term and painting the front of the tubes black – forcing the neon to only shine from behind. Attempting to reconcile how the United States can be a place of both hope and oppression, the flickering light always shines again and again despite periods of darkness.

Written by Gwyneth Cunningham, Curatorial Intern ’25