Kimball Art Center opens In the Shadow of the Wall June 7

Photo: Kimball Arts Center

The exhibition combines photography, video, and sculpture using both traditional and nontraditional materials and more to feature site-specific, community-engaged, and collaboratively produced artworks that examine the contemporary impacts of the U.S.-Mexico border.

PARK CITY, Utah – Kimball Art Center announces its upcoming exhibition, In the Shadow of the Wall, opening June 7, 2024. The opening reception will take place from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Several exhibiting artists will be in attendance.

In the Shadow of the Wall features work by nationally renowned artists, architects, and researchers, including Tanya Aguiñiga, Margarita Cabrera, Teddy Cruz and Fonna Forman, Ana Teresa Fernández, Christina Fernandez, Pablo López Luz, Hector Dionicio Mendoza, Elizabeth Pineda, Jami Porter Lara, Rael San Fratello, Jorge Rojas, Stephanie Syjuco, Kelly Tapia-Chuning, Consuelo Jimenez Underwood, and the Undocumented Migration Project.

“While contemporary conversations around the U.S.-Mexico border often fixate on the enforcement infrastructure in this rugged landscape of geopolitical conflict, they tend to neglect the social, ecological, and ancestral relationships that transcend any national boundary,” explains Kimball Art Center Curator Nancy Stoaks. “In the Shadow of the Wall renders visible what these conversations often obscure: the daily realities of suffering on the border, in addition to countless examples of our interdependence and connection.”

“As a Mexican immigrant living in Utah, I commend the Kimball Art Center for organizing an exhibition that aims to foster dialogue, understanding, and educational opportunities around the complex issues related to the Mexico/U.S. border,” shares exhibiting artist Jorge Rojas. “These issues include but are not limited to migration, labor, U.S. immigration, and the politics surrounding border policy. Latinos constitute more than 15% of Utah’s total population, and nearly one-quarter of the population in Park City is Latino, with the majority being of Mexican descent. The significance, relevance, and timeliness of this exhibition can not be overstated.”

The exhibition combines photography, video, and sculpture using both traditional and nontraditional materials and more to feature site-specific, community-engaged, and collaboratively produced artworks that examine the contemporary impacts of the U.S.-Mexico border. Their earnest and, at times, playful works confront stark divisions between people and nations and illuminate both struggle and spirit on the border.

Together, the works in the exhibition ask viewers to consider:

• What is a border, and what role does a border serve?

• How and why have borders changed over time?

• What impacts do borders have on families, communities, and ecosystems today?

• How could border policy be reevaluated?

• Why are some borders more polarizing than others?

The exhibition will be accompanied by programs, including art talks, performances, book discussions, and on-site interactive art experiences.