Stephanie Syjuco in "San Francisco Bay Area"

Stephanie Syjuco stages photographs for her “CITIZENS” series in this preview of the upcoming “San Francisco Bay Area” episode from Season 9 of the “Art in the Twenty-First Century” television series.

Drawing from the current political climate as well as from protest imagery, Syjuco dresses her portrait sitters in masks and black attire, creating composite characters that are part fiction and part reality. “Black-clad individuals are usually associated with a very direct action,” says the artist. “Is it a character that one finds problematic or is it something that might elicit even some empathy?”

“San Francisco Bay Area” from Season 9 of Art in the Twenty-First Century premiered September 28, 2018 on PBS. Watch the full episode and artist segment.