Liminal Spaces: A Visual Memoir at Roberson Museum, is a sweeping, museum-wide exhibition by Binghamton-born artist Rich Harrington. For the first time in Roberson’s history, a single artist has had work in every gallery and even the historic Roberson Mansion. And the effect is transformative. I was fortunate to tour the exhibition with Harrington himself as my guide.
“This is not just in one gallery. We’re in the entire Roberson campus, including the mansion,” Harrington told me as we walked through the rooms. “Part of that was to create other liminal spaces between one piece and another piece.”
That word, liminal, is key. Harrington’s work lives in the “in-between”, the thresholds of memory, identity, and change that shape all of our lives. Drawing on his own childhood in the 1960s, he blends school life, games, suburban rituals, and pop culture touchstones into works that feel both familiar and new. This isn’t nostalgia for its own sake - Harrington reshapes what we think we know into something surreal, layered, and deeply reflective, asking us to consider: how do we learn who we are, and what parts of that story get left out?
One of the most striking paintings in the exhibition is First Day of School, which reimagines a photograph from Harrington’s own childhood. “I have a starched seersucker shirt on with these very ironed chino pants. What’s interesting about the photo is how iconic it feels of the early-1960s suburban lifestyle,” he recalls. But, as with much of his work, the deeper meaning emerges when you look closer. At his elementary school, children were given ID tags to wear in case they got lost. “It had your name, your parent’s name and phone number, your teacher, and the school you went to. I understand the logic, but it was also a subtle way of labeling.” In Harrington’s version of the photo, the tag doesn’t list his information - it simply says “gay,” with a checkbox beside it.
This questioning of labels and identity runs throughout the exhibition, surfacing again in its central piece, Nuclear. Drawing inspiration from the 1950s board game Go To The Head Of The Class, the imagery of a traditional nuclear family feels familiar, but the labels associated with each image have been deliberately rearranged. Framed in bright pink LED lights and glittering with reflections from a nearby disco ball, Nuclear immediately catches the eye. But Harrington insists it’s more than spectacle. “You know, I'm trying to set up a fun experience that draws people in and gets them to think and start a dialog, because at this point in time, we need to be talking about this stuff. It's a pretty bold exhibit, especially for these times. I mean, this could be shut down tomorrow, but it won't be, and I won't be either.”
Throughout the exhibition, Harrington uses humor, honesty, and bold visual storytelling to create a space where difficult ideas become approachable. One moment you’re smiling at a playful twist on a childhood memory; the next you’re drawn into deeper questions about how identity is shaped, labeled, and understood. His art doesn’t hand you answers, it invites you to pause, reflect, and begin a conversation.
Liminal Spaces: A Visual Memoir is on view through October 19 at Roberson Museum.
Is there cool art stuff happening in your town? I would love to hear about it!