OCEANSIDE, CA (AUGUST 7, 2024) – Oceanside Museum of Art (OMA) is proud to announce the upcoming exhibition Transformative Currents: Art and Action in the Pacific Ocean, as a part of Getty’s initiative PST ART: Art & Science Collide. Open to the public from August 17 in part, and from September 7 in full, through January 19, 2025, Transformative Currents examines the historical causes and ongoing effects of the cultural and environmental devastation of the Pacific Ocean and harnesses art’s potential to enact positive ecological change, both local and planetary. Works in diverse media, including video, sculpture, drawings, and photography, by 21 international contemporary artists and collaborative teams are organized around the theme of ocean currents, which traverse the Pacific and suggest fluidity, interconnectivity, and collective responsibility.
Transformative Currents is the first exhibition of its kind in Southern California to channel this geographically diverse range of perspectives on environmental issues throughout the entirety of the Pacific Ocean. It is a testament to the power of collaborative and interdisciplinary approaches, bridging artistic, scientific, and Indigenous knowledge systems to foster a deeper understanding of the Pacific’s vast cultural and ecological landscapes. Each project addresses a specific issue affecting the oceanic environment; together, they highlight interdependency and the impact of local actions on global problems.
“We cannot separate the issues facing the Pacific; they are interrelated and affect us all,” explains Cassandra Coblentz, lead curator of the exhibition. “This exhibition is a call to recognize our shared responsibility and the dynamic interconnectedness of our actions.”
The project conceives of the ocean through metaphors of fluidity and flow that characterize the ocean as both planetary and deeply local. This thinking led to the development of an organizing framework for the exhibition modeled on the phenomena of ocean currents. Currents traverse the entirety of the Pacific (and the globe) in dynamic connective circuits that move across time and space, both vertically and horizontally. Building on this model, Transformative Currents dives into four critical themes, or ‘transformative currents,’ that intersect art, ecology, and community and are present in all of the works included. The following currents frame the exhibition’s holistic approach to understanding and addressing the multifaceted issues facing the Pacific Ocean, its cultures, and communities.
· Research-based Practices: Scientific Methods and Ecologies of Knowledge
This theme explores the intersection of art with scientific inquiry and knowledge systems, emphasizing the role of research in understanding and responding to ecological challenges. It encourages a multidisciplinary approach that includes both scientific methods and Indigenous ecologies of knowledge, highlighting the importance of diverse experiential perspectives in addressing environmental issues.
· Oceanic Reciprocity: Human and More-than-Human Relationships with the Ocean
Focusing on the relationships between humans and the more-than-human world, this theme delves into what it means to live in reciprocity with the ocean and its inhabitants. It reflects on how humans interact with marine life and ecosystems, emphasizing the interconnectedness of all living beings and the importance of living in harmony with oceanic environments and life forms. This theme also examines issues of stewardship, conservation, and awareness of the ocean’s biodiversity, drawing attention to the ethical implications of human actions on marine ecosystems.
· Sited Art Actions: Methodologies in Engaging Community and Pacific Environments
This theme highlights art that is not only representational but actively engaged in community and environmental intervention. It emphasizes aspects of artworks that are site-specific and action-oriented, aiming to foster community involvement and address specific ecological issues within the Pacific region. These artworks serve as catalysts for environmental activism, community organizing, and public awareness.
· Futuring in the Present: Proposals for Eco-social Futurisms
Here, the focus shifts to speculative and visionary concepts that posit future possibilities for ecological and social harmony. Drawing on Indigenous beliefs in nonlinear temporalities, artists challenge current narratives around ecological degradation and offer hopeful, alternative futures. This theme emphasizes the link between past, present, and future, encouraging viewers to think beyond the present state of ecological crisis, and proposing innovative pathways towards a more sustainable and equitable world.
Each of these currents underscores the exhibition’s overarching goal: to use art as a medium for exploring, understanding, and addressing the complex web of cultural, ecological, and social issues facing the Pacific Ocean and its communities. Through these themes, Transformative Currents offers a multidimensional perspective on how art can contribute to ecological awareness, cultural understanding, and positive change.
“Creating a dialog between Southern California artists and others in Pacific regions, who are interconnected by oceanic currents that traverse the Pacific, is a beautiful way to celebrate OMA’s mission of sharing the art and stories of Southern California artists,” explains Maria Mingalone, Executive Director of OMA. “What also unites these artists is an intellectual passion to harness art’s potential to offer real and speculative possibilities for change starting with awareness and education to improve coastal conditions and the health of our ocean.”
The physical installation will loosely reflect a vertically oriented circuit of ocean currents, moving visitors from the surface of the water to the depths of the deep sea. The ground floor galleries will represent issues impacting environments above sea level—wetlands, beaches, and shorelines—while, in the upstairs galleries, visitors will be immersed in underwater ocean spaces. The museum building will also be incorporated into the exhibition through a video projection on the exterior of the building and collaborative augmented reality. The exhibition will include many newly created works of art, including commissions by Paul Rosero Contreras, L. Frank and Jane Chang Mi, Maja Godlewska and Marek Ranis, Marcos Lutyens, Alex Monteith and Maree Sheehan, and Fran Siegel.
The full list of participating artists includes:
· Irwan Ahmett and Tita Salina (Jakarta, Indonesia)
· Ana Andrade (Tijuana, Mexico and San Diego, CA)
· Jake Atienza (San Francisco, CA/Bantayan Island, Philippines) and Martha Atienza (Bantayan Island, Philippines) / DAKOgamay in collaboration with GOODLand
· Isabel Beavers (Los Angeles, CA)
· Ohan Breiding and Shoghig Halajian (Brooklyn, NY)
· Sean Connelly (Honolulu, HI)
· Paul Rosero Contreras (Quito and Galápagos, Ecuador)
· Megan Cope (Meeanjin/Brisbane, Australia)
· L. Frank (Santa Rosa, CA) and Jane Chang Mi (Honolulu, HI)
· Maja Godlewska and Marek Ranis (Charlotte, NC)
· Beatriz Jaramillo (Los Angeles, CA)
· Liz Larner (Bellingham, WA)
· Charles Lim (Singapore)
· Marcos Lutyens (Los Angeles, CA)
· Alex Monteith (Te Piha, Aotearoa/New Zealand) and Maree Sheehan (Waikato, Aotearoa/New Zealand) in collaboration with Te Kāhui o Taranaki Takutai Kaitiaki (Te Kāhui o Taranaki Iwi) and Project Reef (Te Tai-O-Rehua/Tasman Sea, South Taranaki Bight)
· Enrique Ramirez (Santiago, Chile and Paris, France)
· Tiare Ribeaux (Honolulu, HI) and Qianqian Ye (Los Angeles, CA)
· Genevieve Robertson (Nelson, British Columbia)
· Fran Siegel (San Pedro, CA)
· Angela Tiatia (Sydney, Australia)
· Cecilia Vicuña (New York, NY and Santiago, Chile)
Curated by Cassandra Coblentz with assistant curators Aaron Katzeman and Ziying Duan
Transformative Currents: Art and Action in the Pacific Ocean will have two off-site satellite installations with partner organizations: the Orange County Museum of Art (OCMA) in Costa Mesa will present work by Liz Larner, and the Crystal Cove Conservancy in Newport Beach will present an installation created by Maja Godlewska and Marek Ranis.
The exhibition will be accompanied by a catalog that brings together leading writers, scientists, artists, and activists. Set to be released in January of 2025, the publication includes texts by the exhibition curators, as well as Elizabeth DeLoughrey, Angela Mooney D’Arcy and Charles Sepulveda, as well as numerous other contributors. It is designed by Polymode Studio and published by X Artists’ Books.
Please find images of artworks from Transformative Currents here.
For more information about Transformative Currents at Oceanside Museum of Art, please visit https://oma-online.org/transformative-currents-2/
For more information about PST ART, please visit https://pst.art/
About Oceanside Museum of Art
Oceanside Museum of Art (OMA) is a non-profit organization that began providing exhibitions and public programs in 1995 as part of their mission to bring people together to explore the art and stories of Southern California artists. OMA’s exhibition program is dynamic and robust, surprising visitors with a fresh and exciting visual experience nearly every visit. In addition to these boundary-pushing contemporary art exhibitions, OMA’s programming includes youth education programs, adult art classes, concerts, films, and creative community parties and events that appeal to locals and tourists alike. The OMA experience stimulates imagination, presents new ideas, and challenges the familiar in a welcoming environment for those new to art, longtime museum-goers, artists, art students, or simply the curious. For more information on Oceanside Museum of Art, visit https://oma-online.org/.
About Oceanside Museum of Art
Oceanside Museum of Art (OMA) is a non-profit organization that began providing exhibitions and public programs in 1995 as part of their mission to bring people together to explore the art and stories of Southern California artists. OMA’s exhibition program is dynamic and robust, surprising visitors with a fresh and exciting visual experience nearly every visit. In addition to these boundary-pushing contemporary art exhibitions, OMA’s programming includes youth education programs, adult art classes, concerts, films, and creative community parties and events that appeal to locals and tourists alike. The OMA experience stimulates imagination, presents new ideas, and challenges the familiar in a welcoming environment for those new to art, longtime museum-goers, artists, art students, or simply the curious. For more information on Oceanside Museum of Art, visit https://oma-online.org/.
About PST ART: Art & Science Collide
Southern California’s landmark arts event, PST ART, returns in September 2024, presenting more than 60 exhibitions from organizations across the region exploring the intersections of art and science, both past and present. PST ART is presented by Getty. For more information about PST ART: Art & Science Collide, please visit https://pst.art/.
