A Senior Capstone Experience by Sophia Lennox ’24

Submitted to the Art + Art History Department

Advised by Dr. Benjamin Tilghman 

Contributor Biography: Sophia Lennox is a 2024 WAC graduate who majored in History and Art + Art History and minored in Museum, Field, and Community Education and Gender Studies. She is currently living in Philadelphia with plans to enter a graduate program in American Studies. She enjoys art with thoughtful stories, human connection, and interesting historical context.  

Description: At its simplest, Strange Fruit by Zoe Leonard is a collection of over three hundred fruit skins, repaired at the torn edges with string, twine, zippers, buttons, and other materials. The creation of Strange Fruit was an extensive and powerful act of mourning, and the piece is a symbol of the failures of the AIDS epidemic, as well as an example of the detrimental conflict between art institutions and ephemeral art. This paper intimately explores the piece by debating its categorization and wider art history ties; examining elements of the physicality and intended exhibition of the piece; discussing its connection to the anti-lynching movement and the HIV/AIDS epidemic; considering Leonard’s relationship with the man who inspired the piece, David Wojnarowicz; and addressing the controversial conservation by the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Ultimately, this paper ‘aims to understand’ a piece of art that intentionally will decompose until nothing remains.  

Read Sophia’s SCE below:

Photo by Pascal Bondis from PixabyPixaby