WOMEN ARTISTS ON IMMIGRATION

Crossing Borders, Confronting Barriers, Bridging Identities

February 20 – March 7, 2009

Korean Cultural Center Art Gallery

5505 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, 90036

323.936.7141 / www.kccla.org

Gallery Hours: Open M-Fri., 9-5; Sat. 10-5

Opening Reception: February 27, 2009, from 7 to 9 PM

Includes WCA 5th International Video Shorts Festival screening juried by Véronique Sapin.

Closing SCWCA Event: Saturday, March 7, 12:30 to 2 PM

Artists talks about their work in celebration of International Women’s Day

WOMEN ARTISTS ON IMMIGRATION offers a rich viewing opportunity to explore the dynamic subject of immigration. Each subtopic — Crossing Borders, Confronting Barriers, Bridging Identities — is amplified in the multiple perspectives of the 40 women artists selected by MOCA Curator Alma Ruiz, who is herself an immigrant and naturalized citizen. Together, the works inspire an ongoing conversation sparked by the sharing of personal experience and the aesthetic presentation of social and political complexities that help to inform our cultural, personal and political identities. The Juror's Statement prepared for the catalog further illuminates the concerns of the artists.

To broaden the public dialogue, the organizers added two complementary sets of work: selected immigration posters from the Center for the Study of Political Graphics and a digital projection of the images submitted by artists in response to the call for participation.

This exhibition is organized and presented by the Pacific Region chapters of the Women's Caucus for Art and the Korean Cultural Center of Los Angeles in conjunction with the Center for the Study of Political Graphics and the WCA New Media Caucus. The Korean Cultural Center Art Gallery is situated at 5505 Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles. A full-color catalog accompanies the exhibition.

It is part of The Feminist Art Project and is made possible, in part, by a grant from the Los Angeles County Arts Commission.

PARTICIPATING ARTISTS: Mariana Barnes*, Yvonne Beatty*, Alejandra Chaverri*, Ching-Ching Cheng, Gilda Davidian, Cosette Dudley*, Dwora Fried*, Shelley Gazin*, Elizabeth Gómez, Becky Guttin, Jennifer Maria Harris, Trudi Chamoff Hauptman*, Judy Johnson-Williams*, Niku Kashef*, Arzu Arda Kosar and Gul Cagin, Patricia Krebs, Alexia Kutzner, Li ’n Lee, Lynn Elliott Letterman*, Viviana Lombrozo*, Poli Marichal, Michelle Montjoy, Carol Nye, Amparo J. Ochoa, Priscilla Otani*, Lark (Larisa Pilinsky)*, Sinan Leong Revell, Patricia Rodriguez*, Sandy Rodriguez, Ann Storc, Yuriko Takata*, Luz Tapia, Tate Sisters, Linda Vallejo, Alicia Villegas, Sama Wareh, Sarah Wilkinson, Holly Wong*

*WCA Members

WCA ART AND ACTIVISM INITIATIVE & 2009 NATIONAL CONFERENCES

The exhibition takes place during the February 2009 College Art Association (CAA) and Women's Caucus for Art (WCA) conferences. Women Artists on Immigration is part of the WCA ART AND ACTIVISM INITIATIVE that happens both inside and outside gallery walls. It consists of exhibitions, discussions and collaborative projects around the country that visually profile the thinking of how we live our lives together and share concerns on critical social issues.

Related 2009 WCA Confab Events All are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted.

• Wed. Feb. 25, "Feminist Artists and Motherhood" Panel, 12:30-2 PM

  Moderated by Margaret Lazzari at the Los Angeles Convention Center

• Wed. Feb. 25, "WCA EcoArt & Activism Meet Up," 3:3-5 PM

  Includes artist talk with Kim Abeles at EVO Lofts, 11th & Grand

• Fri. Feb. 27, WOMEN ARTISTS ON IMMIGRATION Reception, 7-9 pm

  Includes WCA Video Shorts Fest at Korean Cultural Center of Los Angeles

• Sat. Feb. 28, The Feminist Art Project Panels, 9 to 5 PM

  Los Angeles Convention Center

• Sat. Feb. 28, 30th Anniversary Lifetime Achievement Awards, 6:30 - 9 PM

  Wilshire Grand Hotel - dinner tickets available now!

• Sun. March 1, WCA Art & Activism Day — WCA Town Hall Meet Up, 10 AM; Like Water on Rock exhibition reception, 11:30 AM

  American Jewish University followed by visits Loyola Marymount and other academic galleries (fee for bus tour)

ABOUT THE WOMEN’S CAUCUS FOR ART
The Women's Caucus for Art (WCA) is the leading national nonprofit organization for women in the visual arts professions. Founded in 1972, WCA has 27 chapters across the country (six in California) and is an affiliate society of the College Art Association. The Southern California chapter (SCWCA) is the largest local chapter and has been providing programs, workshops, exhibitions and recognition opportunities to women arts professionals in this region for over three decades. Visit www.nationalwca.org.

ABOUT THE KOREAN CULTURAL CENTER
The Korean Cultural Center, Los Angeles (KCCLA) is the largest facility outside of Korea that provides insights into the rich cultural heritage of Korea through sponsored events, films, and educational programs. KCCLA’s spacious 2,500 square foot gallery is a venue for traditional and contemporary art exhibitions. Visit www.kccla.org.

ABOUT THE JUROR
Alma Ruiz is a curator at The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), Los Angeles. She has curated numerous exhibitions of contemporary art, with a primary focus on the postwar period in Italy and Latin America, as well as working with emerging artists. She was born in Guatemala City, earned a B.A. in art history at the University of Southern California, and received an M.A. in Italian language and literature from Middlebury College.