On the new Chrysalis podcast (launching October 2021), host John Fiege will be in conversation with a remarkable group of environmental thinkers—writers, artists, activists, scientists, and spiritual leaders—about their paths through life. This live recording, organized in conjunction with The Blessings of the Mystery, an exhibition featuring the work of Carolina Caycedo and David de Rozas currently on view at the Visual Arts Center, will explore the artists’ process in confronting the complex histories and ecologies of West Texas. The conversation will also explore Cayedo and de Rozas' previous work, which addresses colonialism, Indigenous cultural traditions, and the relationships between humans and nature.
Attendees are invited to view the event in-person or via live webinar. Masks are strongly encouraged for in-person attendees. Advance registration is required to attend the webinar.
This event is co-presented by the Visual Arts Center, The Viola S. Hoffman and George W. Hoffman Lectureship in Liberal Arts and Fine Arts – Humanities Institute, and the Department of Radio-Television-Film at The University of Texas at Austin.
Bios
Carolina Caycedo lives and works in Los Angeles. Her multidisciplinary practice examines themes of environmental activism, encounters between history and memory, Indigenous rights, and the formation and dissemination of knowledge. Her work has been exhibited widely, including exhibitions at MCA Chicago, ICA Boston, El Museo del Barrio, TEA–Tenerife Espacio de las Artes, International Women’s Film Festival at Cologne, 45 Salón Nacional de Artistas Colombia, Chicago Architecture Biennial, Centre Pompidou in Paris, MASP São Paulo, and the Royal Academy of Art in London. She is the recipient of a number of fellowships and awards, including VIA Art Fund, Artist Direct Grant, Betty Parsons Fellowship, Inaugural Borderlands Fellowship, and the Wanlass Artist in Residency.
David de Rozas lives and works in Los Angeles. His films have been screened in festivals and film curated series worldwide. He is an Emmy-nominated and award-winning filmmaker who directed and produced “GIVE,” winning seven international awards. De Rozas is a 2021 Artist in Residency at the Headlands Center for the Arts, and a lecturer at the School of Cinema housed in the College of Liberal and Creative Arts at the San Francisco State University.
John Fiege is Assistant Professor of Media Study at the University at Buffalo, SUNY, and an affiliate of the Department of Environment and Sustainability. He is a filmmaker and photographer whose work explores our relationships with one another and the environment, probing key questions at the heart of our global ecological crisis, including how art, activism, community, and culture are vitally linked to our ecological predicament. He studied cultural geography and environmental history in graduate school at The Pennsylvania State University before earning an MFA in film production from The University of Texas at Austin, where he also worked as a lecturer.
