Blaffer Art Museum exhibitions explore identity, history – The Cougar

The Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts launched two new exhibitions at the Blaffer Art Museum, “The Uncanny In-between” and “Mud + Corn + Stone + Blue,” running through March 14. 

The first exhibition, “The Uncanny In-Between,” showcases a range of stoneware, furniture and figurine works by five Korean ceramic artists.

Originally curated by Sso-Rha Kang, the exhibition aims to dissect the complexities of bicultural identity.

“One lesson we hope students experience after viewing the exhibition would be the merit of continued exploration, experimentation and openness,” said the museum’s director and chief curator Laura Augusta.

Students said they resonated with the themes presented in the exhibition.

“My parents are Mexican, and I was born in South Texas, I felt like I wasn’t Mexican enough for my Mexican side or American enough for my American side,” said museum tour guide and art history senior Natalia Cantu.“You don’t have to be Korean to understand the biculturality of the collection.”

Several works strive to subvert traditional and economic norms within Korean culture. One artist, Hae Won Sohn, presented “Notes,” a piece depicting four nude, unfinished molds. 

The figures offer an intentionally imperfect representation of the mold-making production process, an industry for which South Korea is widely known.

Other works focus on the artists’ bicultural upbringings.

Artist Audrey An displayed “Pear Here Pear There”, which featured an American pear and an Asian pear seated on a rocking chair. Beneath the pears is a printed silk image of the cities New York and Seoul, and the chair is supported by a ceramic frog. The piece is intended to symbolize An’s Korean American identity.

The second exhibition, “Mud + Corn + Stone + Blue,” features portraits, paintings, archival documents and video works by artists from the U.S. Corn Belt and Central America.

The exhibition was designed to weave together the history of agriculture and political intervention in Central America through the perspectives of artists and farmers, while using the four elements referenced in the title as guiding themes, Augusta said. 

“Beginning with the U.S. farm crisis of the 1970s, this exhibition traces the experiences of farming, specifically small-scale, family farms in relation to U.S. foreign policy in Central America during the 1980s,” Augusta said. “The individual elements collaboratively bind the work of individual artists into a generally cohesive voice.”

Students said the exhibition was insightful and increased their understanding of Central American history.

“Before going to the exhibition, there was a lot of historical political context in Guatemala that I wasn’t aware of, but now I’m educated about it,” Cantu said.

The element of mud is introduced immediately upon entering the exhibition. Mayan Tz’utujil artist Benvenuto Chavajay’s photograph “Man of Mud” shows Chavajay standing in front of a house while covered in mud.

The image is part of a series of performances intended to reenact passages from the Maya K’iche’ text Popol Vuh, which tells the story of gods attempting to create a man out of mud.

The exhibition also includes video works that correspond with Chavajay’s themes, including a trio of looping videos by Salvadoran artist Melissa Guevara. The videos depict hands kneading soil, touching mud and a solo shot of dirt.

“For Guevara, mud, dirt and soil hold memories, particularly of those lost during years of conflict and the El Mozote massacre in her home country of El Salvador,” Augusta said.

The remaining elements — corn, stone and blue — symbolize different facets of Central American identity and culture.

Corn, a grain native to the Americas, represents both the dietary and spiritual center of life for many Indigenous peoples. Maya blue, a pigment made from minerals and organic materials, is associated with healing properties. Stone, often used as a marker for the dead in religious traditions, also serves as a fundamental material for everyday construction, Augusta said.

Students said they were surprised by the scope and content of the exhibitions, making the experience not just education, but fascinating as well.

“As an artist, I’ve never seen artwork like the ones in these collections. It’s all so interesting,” said painting junior Gabriella Gomez.

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