Everyday Miracles (Extended)
October 1, 2009 – January 30, 2010
An exhibition that brings together seven women artists from across Asia—Hamra Abbas, Ringo Bunoan, Chen Hui-chiao, Shilpa Gupta, Kan Xuan, Minouk Lim, and Jewyo Rhii—and seeks to expand the dialogue on feminism, Asia, and the everyday that has emerged as a new context for creating the extraordinary
in art
Phase 1
Walter and McBean Galleries (SFAI)
Opening reception: Wednesday, September 30, 2009, 5:30–7:30pm
On view: October 1–October 31, 2009
Artists: Shilpa Gupta, Kan Xuan, Minouk Lim, and Jewyo Rhii
Phase 2
Walter and McBean Galleries (SFAI)
Opening reception: Wednesday, November 12, 2009, 5:30–7:30pm
On view: November 13, 2009–January 30, 2010
Artists: Hamra Abbas, Ringo Bunoan, and Chen Hui-chiao
Phase 3
REDCAT in Los Angeles
Opening reception: Saturday, November 21, 2009, 6:00–9:00pm
On view: November 22, 2009–January 17, 2010
Artists: Hamra Abbas, Ringo Bunoan, Chen Hui-chiao, Shilpa Gupta, Kan Xuan, Minouk Lim, and Jewyo Rhii
Walter and McBean Galleries
800 Chestnut Street
San Francisco, CA 94133
Tuesdays–Saturdays, 11:00am–6:00pm
Free and open to the public
Roy and Edna Disney/CalArts Theater (REDCAT)
631 West 2nd Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Free and open to the public
Curated by SFAI’s Director of Exhibitions and Public Programs Hou Hanru, in collaboration with Clara Kim at REDCAT in Los Angeles, Everyday Miracles (Extended) elaborates on Hou’s original project, Everyday Miracles, which he curated for the Chinese Pavilion at the 2007 Venice Biennial and which featured four Chinese women artists from different generations. Everyday Miracles (Extended) expands the dialogue on cultural diversity and historical difference effected by colonialism and modernization across China, India, Korea, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Taiwan. Using the miraculousness of the everyday to negotiate and transcend political and historical reality, the seven women artists in the exhibition explore such questions as “What kind of social vision for society in the future can be conceived?” and “What kind of globalism and commonalities can be built?”
Recognizing the limitations of classic feminist discourse, the artists implicitly express a desire to structurally and systematically reorient Western European intellectual and artistic traditions. From highly varied and individual perspectives, the artists use their own languages to manifest a universal necessity for alternative visions of modernization and globalization. Key to the success of this project is the recognition of the total context in which these artists are creating, and how they relate to their whole environment of art, architecture, urbanization, and related social issues. The seven artists in the exhibition poignantly reflect upon the vast economic and political changes that have affected every aspect of society and explore the world through a decidedly decentralized perspective—a powerful political position to take in the context of a global art market driven by spectacle and essentialist views.
The first collaboration between SFAI’s Walter and McBean Galleries and REDCAT, Everyday Miracles (Extended) concretizes the two institutions’ shared interest in contemporary practices of the Pacific Rim as well as the ongoing dialogue between Hou and Kim. Each of the artists in the exhibition will display unique works over three phases, bridging the two institutions and expanding upon the discrete boundaries of an exhibition.
Born out of a desire for a deeper investigation, Everyday Miracles (Extended) reflects on the dynamic shifts across Asia over the last thirty years. Both the Walter and McBean Galleries and REDCAT have been committed to articulating the historical, cultural, and artistic relationship between the West Coast and the Asia-Pacific region. This exhibition has been conceived as a component both of SFAI’s Pacific Perspectives—one of five discrete but intersecting directions, within SFAI’s exhibitions and public programs, for investigating current constructions of contemporary global culture—and of REDCAT’s ongoing focus on Asian art.
SFAI’s exhibitions and public programs are supported in part by the Grants for the Arts/San Francisco Hotel Tax Fund. Everyday Miracles (Extended) is presented in collaboration with REDCAT in Los Angeles, where it is made possible with the support of the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, the Arts Council Korea, the George and MaryLou Boone Fund for Artistic Advancement, and the Taipei Cultural Center in New York City.
San Francisco Art Institute
Founded in 1871, SFAI is one of the oldest and most prestigious schools of higher education in contemporary art in the US. Focusing on the interdependence of thinking, making, and learning, SFAI’s academic and public programs are dedicated to excellence and diversity.
SFAI’s School of Studio Practice concentrates on developing the artist’s vision through studio experiments and is based on the belief that artists are an essential part of society. It offers a BFA, an MFA, and a Post-Baccalaureate certificate in Design and Technology, Film, New Genres, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, and Sculpture/Ceramics.
SFAI’s School of Interdisciplinary Studies is motivated by the premise that critical thinking and writing, informed by an in-depth understanding of theory and practice, are essential for engaging contemporary global society. It offers degree programs in Exhibition and Museum Studies (MA only), History and Theory of Contemporary Art (BA and MA), and Urban Studies (BA and MA).
SFAI’s Dual Degree MA/MFA program is ideally designed for students who seek a deep and balanced immersion in both theoretical discourse and art practice. A three-year commitment, the degree consists in an MA in History and Theory of Contemporary Art and an MFA in any area of study within the School of Studio Practice (see above).
For more information about this exhibition or other public programs at SFAI, please go to www.sfai.edu or call 415 749 4563.
For information (including important dates) about graduate, post-baccalaureate, and undergraduate admissions at SFAI, please go to www.sfai.edu/admissions .
