Jonathan Carver Moore is pleased to present What’s Left, Never Left, a solo exhibition by New Orleans-based artist Auudi Dorsey. The exhibition features a new body of work developed during Dorsey’s six-week residency at the gallery, continuing the artist’s research into the history of African American communities and water, a subject he began exploring in 2022.
Drawing on archival photographs and records, Dorsey highlights the once-vibrant history of leisure spaces central to African American communities—spaces that fostered joy, community, and resilience, yet have largely been erased through systemic neglect, environmental shifts, and redevelopment. Through his research and artistic practice, his paintings reframe these histories to challenge contemporary narratives of distance between African Americans and aquatic life.
Centering the experiences of African women in particular, Dorsey’s work draws attention to the generational loss of swimming knowledge that has contributed to disproportionately high drowning rates within African American communities. Through this work, Dorsey also seeks to restore a sense of confidence, ownership, and belonging in aquatic spaces. What’s Left, Never Left reimagines the cultural relationship between African Americans and water, bridging past and present while offering a vision of reclamation and empowerment.