NEW YORK — September 24th, 2026 — AIRIE.Foundation will celebrate its 25th anniversary with Ancestral Currents, an installation by Ania Freer and Cornelius Tulloch presented within Platform at The Armory Show, September 24–27 at the Javits Center in New York City. Platform is curated by Jovanna Venegas.

Inspired by the Tree Island Sanctuaries of the Everglades, a fi eld of grass invites a pause. Here, the sounds of Jamaica and the Greater Everglades converge through stories of water, ancestral memory, and belonging, revealing landscapes shaped by movement, resilience, and survival. Across the installation, water emerges as both witness and archive—holding histories that transcend geography while connecting communities. Film, performance, sound, and natural materials create a setting in which water carries memories of migration and the enduring connections.

Freer’s fi lms Kaa-Ha-Yut-Le, Cotton Tree, Shanny, and Shango draw on her archive of oral histories and water mythologies to bring overlooked narratives of labor, folklore, race, and class into view. In Passages, Tulloch reimagines the histories of the Saltwater Railroad through performances by poet Arsimmer McCoy and vocalist Kunya Rowley. Together, the works explore how cultural memory survives across landscapes and generations.

The installation considers the intertwined legacies of colonialism, climate change, and environmental injustice alongside practices of care, resistance, and cultural continuity. It invites audiences to encounter Jamaica and South Florida as connected environments shaped by movement, resilience, and belonging.

Botanical Landscaping developed in collaboration with Saint Agnes Studio. And thisinstallation also features a custom designed furniture piece by Ishka Designs.

For AIRIE.Foundation, this special fellow installation marks 25 years of supporting artists whose practices deepen our understanding of the environments we inhabit. Bringing the work of AIRIE.Foundation artists and alumni to New York extends conversations rooted in the Greater Everglades ecosystem across South Florida to an international audience, advancing the foundation’s vision of “Environments Everywhere.”

AIRIE.Foundation presentation of Ancestral Currents is supported by The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

Artwork Samples:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1094gYJv8unIpysv5B8dbSkMHC_UAFuGq?usp=sharing

Artists Bio + Headshots:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_aMiyDxX6AQwdfajJNHxBiwnsAUqgN0YvrSnzlol18

Exhibition Details

Ancestral Currents | Platform, The Armory Show

September 24–27, 2026 | Javits Center, 429 11th Avenue, New York, NY 10001

Tickets and visitor information: https://www.thearmoryshow.com/tickets

For more details, please visit www.airie.foundation or visit us on instagram @airie.foundation

For inquiries, please contact hello@airie.foundation

About AIRIE.Foundation 

AIRIE.Foundation supports artists working at the intersection of art, environment, and community. Through strategic funding, curatorial platforms, and public programs, we cultivate stewardship, elevate underrepresented narratives, and expand environmental dialogue locally and globally.