The walls of Chase Quinn’s home in the Chicora-Cherokee neighborhood of North Charleston are covered with clues for his diverse interests — a grandfather’s portrait, a poster of jazz icon Dizzy Gillespie, a vintage ad for Lucky Strikes.
And then there’s a gorgeous collection of artwork, most of which came into Quinn’s possession from his relationships with artists through his roles in art criticism and curating cultural programs. There’s a stunning photograph by Titus Heagins, from Durham, North Carolina, fence motif drawings by Charleston artist Fletcher Williams, a black-and-white abstract painting by Charleston’s Lese Corrigan.
Quinn was born in Orange County, California, though he considers Wilmington, Delaware, to be his hometown. A study abroad experience while at Boston University inspired Quinn’s interest in visual art, leading him towards art criticism and eventually creating cultural programming. But really, Quinn said, the seed was planted much earlier, in his home growing up.
“I grew up in a household where, from a very young age, my mother’s family would sit around watching the news or television, and it was always a conversation, questioning the broadcast. No one was ever sitting there passively digesting information. There was always a dialogue with media.”
That kind of formative experience set Quinn up as someone who loves storytelling and the interpretation of it. Quinn said his world cracked open when he went to Boston University to study English and political science.
“Boston is a very cultured city. You can go to the public library and there’s John Singer Sergeant murals on the walls. When I wasn’t in class, I was kind of traipsing about the Museum of Fine Arts, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and the Institute of Contemporary Art.”
After graduation, he worked in a coffee shop back home in Delaware, followed by a year of AmeriCorps service and a move to New York City. At the time, Quinn thought his next venture would be law school, with the aim of becoming a human rights lawyer. But he thought it would be wise to work in the field before committing to four years of school.
That job ended up being a six-year stint at the Center for Constitutional Rights, a progressive human rights organization in New York City. Quinn created arts and cultural programs as an entry point to enroll new people into their mission.
“So instead of, [for example] inviting people to a law lecture, it would be launching a film series where we show cutting-edge films addressing some of the issues that we work on. It’s putting on an art exhibition of art produced by some of our clients at Guantanamo.”
All the while, he had started moonlighting as an arts and culture critic. When he moved to Charleston in 2016, Quinn continued to write for publications like Artforum, Hyperallergic, Bon Appetit and Frieze. He was freelancing for the City Paper, funnily enough, when he wrote about a special exhibition at the Gibbes called Black Refractions: The Studio Museum in Harlem.
“I was just really taken with what I recognized was an important inflection point for the institution — telling more inclusive stories around the visual arts. After the interview with the Gibbes, I knew that I wanted to be a part of that in some way. And as it happened, they were looking for somebody.”
Quinn’s role has evolved over the last four years, though his focus remains on curating programs which broaden narratives and bring in new faces. He’s proud of programs like the Gibbes’ Film in Focus series, a seasonal suite of three films united by a theme. (Past themes include Southern gothic aesthetics and race-passing narratives in American cinema.)
Last January, Quinn spearheaded the first-ever hip-hop concert at the Gibbes — and 48% of surveyed participants responded that this was their first time attending a program at the museum. During a special exhibition of Greek geometric art in March, the Gibbes staged a live production of Antigone.
“We were trying to think of ways to activate that exhibition for our community. I mean, it’s literally ancient art; it can be easy to dismiss it as ancient history. We decided to do an original production playing off resonant contemporary themes, like state violence, man’s law versus state law. We wanted to use this program to connect with people where they are.”
Art history is a living thing
In October, the Gibbes will unveil a special exhibition curated by Quinn. Something Terrible May Happen: The Works of Aubrey Beardsley and Edward “Ned” I.R. Jennings is an exhibition which raises the voice of an undersung talent of the Charleston Renaissance, Ned I.R. Jennings, and questions how the artistic movement is historically understood.
Quinn, who said he’s drawn to artwork which “tests the boundary between the beautiful and the grotesque,” was immediately fascinated when he discovered the work of Edward (Ned) I.R. Jennnings in the Gibbes’ collection storage.
“In the process of familiarizing myself with the Gibbes’ collection, I came across the work of Edward ‘Ned’ I.R. Jennings, whose work immediately jumped out to me as very unique, particularly for the time period.”
The Charleston Renaissance, the interwar period where Charleston experienced a boom in the arts, is the subject of two dedicated galleries and much of the collection at the Gibbes. Many of the works in this period tend to be romantic landscapes and images of the South.
“What was remarkable to me was [Jennings made] these fabulous, dramatic costume designs, grotesque masks and imaginative abstract landscapes. It was immediately obvious to me that he had a very original voice.”
But there was something familiar too about Jennings’ work, Quinn said. “I recognized something, I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. I eventually realized that his highly stylized illustrations bore a really striking resemblance to the work of Aubrey Beardsley.”
Beardsley is associated with British Aestheticism, an art movement at the turn of the century in Great Britain which is, in many ways, epitomized by Oscar Wilde and the idea of “art for art’s sake.” British aestheticism was quite controversial for its association with homosexuality; it encouraged political and sexual experimentation, which was in direct conflict with Victorian social mores and values.
“I started to dig a little deeper, and I learned that Oscar Wilde came to Charleston during his tour of America in the late 1800s. I located news articles that referenced ‘aesthetic fever,’ which told me that Charlestonians were very much aware of this art movement. From there, I started building on those connections and shaping the story.”
Historically, the Charleston Renaissance has been interpreted as being primarily influenced by French Impressionism and Japanese woodblock prints.
This exhibition will be the first time where British Aestheticism is identified as a significant influence on the Charleston Renaissance, and thereby, queer aesthetics as an influence.
“And that’s significant. It really forces one to take a second look at visual culture in Charleston, in general, a city that is so often identified as having conservative values, and recognizing that perhaps there were other shades to the Charleston Renaissance that continue to influence visual culture here.”
The Lowdown of Chase Quinn
Age: 37.
Birthplace: Anaheim, California.
Education: Boston University.
Family: One older brother and my dad; my mom died when I was young but I’m very close to her side of the family.
Pets (names, type, age): I’ve recently been adopted by a stray tabby currently known as “Honey.”
Something people would be surprised to learn about you: I’m actually very naive.
Favorite thing to do outside of work: Run, read, watch movies.
Books on bedside table: The Other You by Joyce Carol Oates.
Favorite novel: The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton.
Favorite food to eat: My grandmother’s spaghetti with her fried chicken wings.
Favorite food to cook: Chicken enchiladas.
Favorite cocktail or beverage: French 75.
Five foods you always need in your refrigerator: Oatmilk, greek yogurt, cheese, water, chardonnay.
Three people (alive or dead) you’d like to dine with: Oscar Wilde, Lorraine Hansberry and Uma Thurman.
Something that you have too much of at home: Tupperware.
Secret vice: Selling Sunset.
Guilty pleasure: Binge-watching Youtube recordings of Psyiconic trolling people on TikTok.
Favorite musicians: Donny Hathaway, Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu, Billie Holiday, and Chet Baker.
Describe your best day in 50 words or less: A long run in Central Park, followed by a long lunch and trip to the Met with my best girlfriend, and topped off with an even longer night of dancing in the West Village.
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