Artists grapple with climate change and issues at U.S.-Mexico border
The Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem Museum of Art at UC Davis has announced two new, timely exhibits opening along with the museum on Aug. 7. “OJO” and Breath(e): Toward Climate and Social Justice will be on display until Dec. 1.
Learn more about the exhibits:
“OJO” Julio César Morales
Julio César Morales — artist, curator and a former museum director — grew up along the U.S.–Mexico border between San Diego and Tijuana. After nearly a decade in Arizona creating work about the border, “OJO” marks his California homecoming and return to full-time studio practice through a mid-career survey bridging past and future to reflect on the present. This theme of history and what lies ahead is central to both the exhibition and Morales’ neon sign welcoming visitors to the Manetti Shrem Museum.
It was curated by Rachel Teagle, founding director of the museum.
A complementary exhibition, Julio César Morales: My America, will be on view at Gallery Wendi Norris in San Francisco from Sept. 19 to Nov. 1. That exhibition features a large-scale sound installation created in collaboration with Mexican Institute of Sound, alongside watercolors from Morales’ new body of work, Gemelos, which builds on the artist’s acclaimed Undocumented Interventions series.
Breath(e): Toward Climate and Social Justice
The lungs of our planet — oceans, forests and the atmosphere — are under threat, invaded by carbon emissions, plastics and man-made pollutants. The act of breathing was rendered even more perilous by the COVID-19 pandemic and police brutality. Breath(e): Toward Climate and Social Justice considers the connections between social and environmental injustice through the lens of contemporary art. This groundbreaking exhibition brings together works focused on climate change by artists, scientists and activists whose practices encompass photography, multimedia, large-scale sculptures, painting and more.
Breath(e): Toward Climate and Social Justice is organized by the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, and guest curated by Glenn Kaino and Mika Yoshitake with Jennifer Buonocore-Nedrelow, Pacific Standard Time Fellow.
The Manetti Shrem Museum's hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. The museum is closed to the public Tuesday and Wednesday but open for UC Davis classes by appointment.
YOU MAY ALSO BE INTERESTED IN:
Exploring the World of Art with L&S Authors
Welcome to Books of the Month, where once a month, L&S staff select works from our Bookshelf of authors within the College of Letters and Science at UC Davis. This month, we are celebrating art and art history spanning centuries from ancient and medieval times around the world through to modern-day California.
What Was the American Dream?
The American Dream as both idea and ideal, for all its complications, has had an undeniably powerful role in shaping values and aspirations in the U.S. and far beyond its borders. We spoke with faculty and students in the College of Letters and Science at UC Davis who represent a wealth of knowledge and perspectives that help us think about American society’s past, present and continuing potential.