Special Events and Opening Receptions
October 13 – 15, 2023
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: The MexiCali Biennial is proud to present exhibitions and programs related to its current program titled Land of Milk & Honey. Multimedia arts exhibitions will open in Mexicali and Calexico mid-October through early December. Artist receptions, performances, and border activations will take place the weekend of October 13 – 15 on both sides of the border. This is the final round of programming pertaining to LoMaH, which has had previous iterations hosted by the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History, the Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Arts and Culture (Riverside, CA), the San Bernardino County Museum (Redlands, CA), and Best Practice Gallery (San Diego, CA).
Exhibitions in the borderlands will be held at the Steppling Art Gallery and casa la linea – arte contemporaneo in Calexico, CA, USA. Simultaneous exhibitions will take place at Planta Libre Espacio Experimental and IIC Museo in Mexicali. All programs are free and open to the public.
Featured Artists:
Steppling Gallery
October 13 – December 2, 2024
Opening Reception October 13, 4:00 – 6:00 p.m.
Pablo Castañeda and Eduardo Kintero, Janet Diaz, Maria Garcia, Concepción Hidalgo, Cynthia Hooper, IV Equity and Justice Coalition, Mojaveland (Anna Stump and Joe Alvarez), Marco Lopez Valenzuela, Narsiso Martinez, Isidro Pérez García, Jerrod Storm, Devon Tsuno,
Domingo Ulloa, and Sichong Xie.
Isidro Pérez García will perform Pulquería Chilote at casa la linea – arte contemporaneo following the reception from 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. Carne asada will be provided by Baja Ghost Collective.
Museo IIC
October 14th – December 3, 2023
Opening Reception October 14, 1:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Beliz Iristay
October 14 – December 1, 2024
Opening Reception October 14, 7:00 p.m.
Pilo Aceves, Alejandra Aragón, Mino Kiyota, Marco Lopez Valenzuela, Chantal Peñalosa, Omar Pimienta, and Shinpei Takeda.
Chantal Peñalosa will lead a walking tour of the La Chinesca area of Mexicali, where her work will be on display among the restaurants beginning at 6:00 p.m immediately preceding the reception at Planta Libre.
BORDER ACTIVATIONS will occur on Sunday, October 15 beginning at 1:00 p.m. PST with a durational performance by Annabel Turrado. (Electronic Disturbance Theater) EDT 3.0 will utilize audio and drone technology in a performance titled Social Echologies: Scene 3. Click HERE for a full list of events and press kit.
Land of Milk & Honey is a traveling multidisciplinary arts and culture program that focuses on concepts around agriculture in the regions of California and Mexico and is presented by the MexiCali Biennial. Drawing inspiration from John Steinbeck’s portrayal of the region as a corrupted Eden, the program questions ethical, cultural, and regional practices related to foodways, and the venture from seed to table. The biblical reference of a “land of milk and honey” first became associated with California as a tool for promoting the state as a land of opportunity; a destination for those in search of a better way of life – a terra firma that would provide sustenance and abundance. This boosterism also served as an ethos that fueled “Manifest Destiny” and resulted in land grabs, ecological destruction, and social injustices.
The MexiCali Biennial is a non-profit contemporary visual arts organization that focuses on the area encompassing California and Mexico as a region of aesthetic production. The organization is migratory in nature and showcases exhibitions on both sides of the California/Mexico border. The MexiCali Biennial was originally started as a project critiquing the proliferation of international and regional art biennials and as a result, may be shown at any time and at any location.
Visit mexicalibiennial.org for more information.
For inquiries, please contact info@mexicalibiennial.org.