Andrea Bowers: Warnock
Artist in Residence
Artist in Residence
· Marva and John Warnock Endowed Art Residency Program at the University of Utah· Acclaimed artist Andrea Bowers· Spring 2012
For immediate release
Contact Sara Pickett, sara.pickett@utah.edu. 801.585.6237
V. Kim Martinez, Chair Warnock Committee,
kim.martinez@art.utah.edu, 801-581-6513
Salt Lake City-- The University of Utah Department of Art & Art History is proud to announce Andrea Bowers as the 2012 artist in residence for the Marva and John Warnock Endowed Visiting Artist Residency Program. Bowers is an accomplished visual artist, activist, environmentalist, community artist and scholar. Her work focuses primarily on direct action and non-violent civil disobedience. She will be bringing her creative forces to Salt Lake City to work directly with College of Fine Arts students and faculty in the Department of Art & Art History.
Bowers is the second artist to be chosen for this biennial residency program, housed in the Department of Art & Art History, and they are thrilled to have her. Associate Professor Kim Martinez said of Bower’s selection, “She really has her finger on the pulse of what is happening in contemporary art, and for her to be able to work with our community in such an intense way is a phenomenal opportunity.”
Bowers will be teaching for the Department of Art & Art History while living and creating work at Artspace Commons downtown Salt Lake City, which opened in 2010. Executive director, Jessica Norie, says that Artspace is honored to partner with the Department of Art & Art History. “Having artist Andrea Bowers live and create at Artspace is an invaluable opportunity for the Artspace creative community to interact with an artist who has exhibited all over the world. We applaud Ms. Bowers’ social activism and actions on behalf of our planet. This partnership is a wonderful confluence of our work and hers.”
Bowers will be teaching an interdisciplinary special topics course in Spring 2012, with open enrollment to selective students in the College of Fine Arts. The course is designed to expose students to contemporary art practice and scholarship on the subject of Public practice – also called participatory art, community art, public art, situational art or social sculpture. “My goals and aspirations for the class are to introduce the students to contemporary art methods, practices and theory.” Bowers says, “I hope to work collaboratively with the students to create a project as an outcome of the residency that will focus on the beautiful landscape of Utah and the social, economic and political forces affecting it. Ultimately, it is my hope that these investigations will help each participating student to grow in their individual practices. I have visited Utah many times over the past 20 years because of its significant historic land works and I have been making work about Utah for the past couple of years. I am honored to have the opportunity to work with the students and staff at the University of Utah and I am excited to continue my work here.”
The Utah Museum of Fine Arts (UMFA) acquired two of Bowers’ works: a drawing, "Tim DeChristopher (I Am The Carbon Tax)" (2010), graphite on paper, and a video, "The United States v. Tim DeChristopher" (2010), single channel HD video. “We [the museum] felt these works have particular relevance for the UMFA since Tim was a U of U student” said chief curator at the museum Jill Dawsey. She continues, “I admire the way in which Bowers’ identity as an artist cannot be separated from her identity as a citizen and an activist. At the UMFA, we want to be a space of discussion and debate--a safe space for dialogue about difficult questions and issues, which is one reason we acquired Bowers' portrait of Tim de Christopher. Work like Bowers' demonstrates its relevance by engaging questions that are crucial to our democracy and to our contemporary moment.
Ms. Bowers will be giving a public lecture on January 25th in the Dumke Auditorium at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts. This lecture is free and open to the public. We are so thrilled to have Andrea return to Utah to work and create with our students, our fellow artists and our community. Please visit www.finearts.utah.edu for more information.
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Sara PickettPublic Relations Associate
College of Fine Arts, Dean’s Office
801.585.6237
sara.pickett@utah.edu
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