TURN Gallery is pleased to present Marcus Leslie Singleton in CIRCUSLAND. This marks his first solo exhibition in New York City.


Growing up we are many things: astronauts, firefighters, ballerinas. But however far removed we become from those things, they are still tucked away in deep parts of us. As people we grow up with these dreams, and for some of us they are crystal clear. Why is it that we have a harder time attaching ourselves to the things we love? This is what the circus is all about.


The circus is us as humans, trying to find resolution to the life and death equation. How do we make life better. Each generation comes up with new innovative solutions. Imagine the juggler. A woman has 2 jobs, is going back to school, and raising her 3 children. Dad is in jail. This is certainly a circus act that is all too common in the black community, yet we still find a way to make things work. This is the circus. Mirrored to this is the way we show such dexterity, style, and strength. We create music, art, and write books about all the ways we move though life. This is the circus. The cultural eye is multifaceted and our community is a reflection of the whole country — it’s maybe the greatest circus ever! Welcome to Circusland.


The circus! The circus! The circus is coming to town and in fact it’s already in your town and you are already in it. You are the circus, your social media account, your job, your relative that doesn’t understand that, they too are on stage. Being a part of the circus is being born into this world. It’s learning who you are, it’s learning about sex, it’s noticing a building you’ve passed by many times before, it’s knowing you are breathing time after time and there is really nothing that can stop you from being in the circus. We are all saved only in so much as we are rescued from ourselves. The mask the clown wears is just that. Perhaps the clown really is happy under that paint. Is the acrobat maintaining momentary flight in the hope to escape falling again…the feeling of being alive is the circus and all that it encompasses.


- Marcus Leslie Singleton


Marcus Leslie Singleton was born in 1990. His most recent exhibitions include Office & Gallery, Los Angeles, CA; Medium Tings, Brooklyn, NY; Brilliant Champions, Brooklyn, NY; University of Washington, Seattle, WA; C Art Gallery, Seattle, WA. He currently lives and works in Brooklyn, NY.