Marisa Morán Jahn: The Mighty and the Mythic

Penny Stamps speaker series talk: “Unraveling Power Through Art, Play, and Hijinks.” 
Michigan Theater, Ann Arbor 
Opening: Featuring a live set by Detroit-based DJ Nandi Comer from the Seraphine Collective. 
CareForce One Travelogues: film screening and discussion: Co-presented with Michigan United. 
Bibliobandido bookmaking workshop with 826michigan: A family story-making workshop. 

The Penny W. Stamps School of Art & Design at the University of Michigan is proud to present The Mighty and the Mythic, a solo exhibition of work by renowned social practice artist Marisa Morán Jahn on view at Stamps Gallery (201 S. Division St., Ann Arbor) January 24–March 2, 2019. 

For the first time, The Mighty and the Mythic brings together three key projects—CareForce (2012-ongoing), Bibliobandido (2010–ongoing), and MIRROR | MASK (2017–ongoing)—that highlight her deep and meaningful collaborations with low-wage immigrants, caregivers, and youth. Jahn describes her use of play and humor as essential tools that enable her and her collaborators to portray their lives with dignity, critique power, and build momentum within their community. Jahn’s practice is deeply informed by her own experiences growing up as a second-generation immigrant of Chinese and Ecuadorian heritage. For Jahn, home was not a fixed place but an adaptation itself. Her varied vocational past as a schoolteacher, caretaker, woodshop cleaner-upper, lumber hauler, community organizer, and now university professor and mother informs the urgency in her work to find common ground between (her-)self and (an-)other, through the concepts of care and empathy. Each of the works in this exhibition highlights her deep engagement with the stories of everyday people, mundane routines, and a desire to build an inclusive society. Marisa Morán Jahn: the Mighty and the Mythic celebrates and acknowledges the daily struggles and minor victories of the 99 percent that make up the spirit of our society in the 21st century.

Stamps Gallery hours: Tuesday–Wednesday and Saturday–Sunday 11am–5pm,
Thursday–Friday 11am–7pm