activistartofucsc

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Sloane Harris

UCSC Second Year, 20

Restoring the Right to Vote, 2022

Collage on Paper

‘Restoring the Right to Vote’ was completed in March 2022 to complement the work 'Hottest Year in Hell', both thematically centering around the 2020 presidential election, and California's yes vote on proposition 17. Resulting in this approval previously incarcerated individuals out on parole will have their voting rights restored. This collage was made with magazine clippings from Art in America, Breathe, and Rock.

Sloane’s Curator’s Note/Artist Elaboration: During the 2020 election I experienced a lot of moral entanglements with the presidential aspect of voting, however, I recall this proposition being one of the easiest choices made during that electoral cycle. The right of all people affected by US policy and elections to have a say in what happens to them is something I strongly support, clearly, this wide-reaching statement applies to most of the world's inhabitants making logistically implementing this sentiment unrealistic. However, proposition 17 is a powerful step towards this value, making my vote an easy choice. While selecting the pictures I used in this piece I gravitated towards imagery connected with freedom, bleak brutalist architecture, imprisonment, voting, and the body behind bars. I wanted to use this collage to highlight the most memorable and important proposition in my opinion, especially as it gives disproportionately incarcerated BIPOC a right to speak and be heard.

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Sloane Harris

UCSC Second Year, 20

Hottest Year in Hell, 2020

Collage on Cardboard

'Hottest Year in Hell' was completed in November 2020 on the back of a Trader Joe’s Fig and Olive Crisps box with clippings from Art in America magazines. Topics inspiring work include the presidential election of that year, human loss and suffering as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, and political protests following murders committed in acts of police brutality.

Sloane's Curator's Note/Artist Elaboration: What inspired this work was a moral conflict about the choice to vote in the presidential election of that year, and participate in a lesser of two evils judgment. The candidate aligned with my values was not selected in the democratic primaries, and voting just to get a candidate out of office regardless of my disdain for the opponent’s past felt ethically wrong. Additionally, my Introduction to Critical Race and Ethnic Studies class I was enrolled in at the time obviously focused strongly on the evils of American history, leaving me very pessimistic about positive change coming from either politician’s presence in the oval office. Even if the legislator I was supporting were elected the radical systemic changes demanded to be implemented, especially with the incompetent handling of the pandemic and police brutality epidemic, would not be possible in a four-year term. I chose to include this work because it was a very organic display of processing political distress and hopelessness felt during this period of time. The specific depiction of fire being not only a destructive force but a creative one with power for change felt relevant to the direction of social media for social justice.

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Jennifer Holt

UCSC First Year, 19

Standards, 2021

Digital Collage

This piece, as described by Jennifer, is supposed to display the societal standards and pressures that the youth in our generation are exposed to. Featuring clips from gossip magazines that preach weight loss and dieting programs, this piece especially focuses on the beauty standards surrounding weight that are so prevalent in society, and that impact girls at a very young age. This piece is a criticism of media that reinforces unhealthy standards.

Madison's Curator Note: My immediate thought when seeing this piece was that Tumblr, as a space full of both wonderful art and incredibly damaging media relating to body image, was an appropriate place to share this piece and raise awareness. As stated in Allison McCracken's article, "Tumblr Youth Subcultures and Media Engagement", "Tumblr 's spaces can also be conflicted and challenging as well as supportive, as many young people are introduced to new ideas and interactions in an often highly charged atmosphere". I think that this piece shares a very important message to help combat the negative standards that young people are exposed to.

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Jennifer Holt

UCSC First Year, 19

Bezos, 2021

Digital Collage

Holt's piece, "Bezos", represents not only Jeff Bezos, but all of the other multibillionaires that have the power to change and improve our planet, in terms of ending world hunger and the homelessness crisis, and preventing climate change, along with many other global issues. Jennifer criticizes these people in the top 1%, for their greed and capitalistic views, and for the fact that they have hardly made an effort to use their money to benefit the world as a whole. She especially points out that while the silhouette in her collage is Bezos's silhouette, the anonymity in the image shows that he is just one of many who are in a powerful position to make change, but don't choose to do so out of greed.

Madison's Curator Note: Bezos and other multibillionaires in his position have so much power over our lives and futures, yet so many of them are overcome with greed and capitalistic values. They impact all of our futures, especially when it comes to climate change, yet because they don't often hold political positions, and aren't always in the media, they have a sort of anonymity that allows them to go about their lives without making an effort to better our world. This is especially true in cases like Bezos, who donates money to help climate change, but also causes a devastating amount of pollution with his company. This piece urges viewers to acknowledge the fact that global issues, like climate change, are not unsolvable, but that the people with power are those with money.

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Millie Hacker American, age 19 Pobart’s Decline, 2022 Digital incorporating photo

When asked questions about themselves, their artistic process, or the meanings and inspirations behind their work, Hacker declined to respond, out of fear that these answers would cloud the viewer’s mind from meaningful interpretation. 

Paloma’s Curator Note: When I first saw this piece, I saw a haze of smoke and floating debris, surrounding bare trees, and was instantly reminded of the wildfires that spread throughout Santa Cruz last year. To me, this work not only represents these fires, but the final culmination of our climate crisis. The World Health Organization has stated that “between 2030 and 2050, climate change is expected to cause approximately 250,000 additional deaths per year”. I see this work as a fearful reminder of the ever-growing climate crisis and its fatal consequences. 

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Avery Hall American, age 21 Feminist Rage, 2022 Mixed media collage

Feminist Rage features a man split in half, with red tampons emerging from the split. Hall describes this piece as being inspired by the “current ongoing legal battles against women’s bodily autonomy, especially the Texas Senate Bill 8”.

Paloma’s Curator Note: As someone from Texas, I was distraught when SB8 went into effect on September 1, 2021. The bill bans abortions in the state of Texas after cardiac activity is present (around six weeks), and allows any private citizen of Texas to sue any individual who “aids or abets” an individual in having an abortion after cardiac activity is present. I was drawn to Hall’s piece, because it encapsulates all of the frustration, anger, and fear that I and so many others had been experiencing. I showcase this work as an act of resistance against the legislations being passed against women’s bodily autonomy, particularly Senate Bill 8 in Texas, as well as Senate Bill 1309 in Idaho.

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Fox Wong

UCSC Second Year, 19

War Creates More Terrorists, 2022

Wood Block Reduction Print

‘War Creates More Terrorists’ is a reduction print in primary colors, featuring a man, dressed in a suit with a cloth covering his face, and a speech bubble around the text. Fox explains that this piece was created in response to the recent breakout of the Russian-Ukranian War and the rampant destruction and loss of life that has followed.

Margaret’s Curator Note: In February of this year, Russia began a systematic invasion of Ukraine. Over the past month, bombing and fighting has decimated cities and neighborhoods and taken the lives of around 15,000 people in only four weeks. The media response to this conflict has been mixed and somewhat controversial, with many people taking to social media to ask why conflicts in other areas of the world do not receive this level of concern or outrage. In reality, conflicts like these are not unheard of or even uncommon. Larger, more powerful countries with endless pools of resources have been taking advantage of less powerful communities for decades in the modern world with no consequences. These conflicts leave death, illness, poverty, and both physical and economic destruction in their wake. Fox’s piece serves to remind viewers that these conflicts are useless and inexcusable, and only create more damage.

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Beatriz Juarez

UCSC Third Year, 20

Power to the People, 2020

Collage

‘Power to the People’ includes magazine cutouts of letters and a photo of professional boxer and activist Muhammad Ali. Bea created this piece as part of a series responding to the political climate during the 2020 Election season, during which the country experienced widespread protests against police brutality and systemic racism.

Margaret’s Curator Note: Spring 2020 saw the United States plunged into chaos. Long awaited discussions regarding systemic racism and injustice were finally being brought to center stage, in the wake of dozens of unjustified police killings. People and communities came together to use their voices in protests across the country, which were met with more violence by the hands of the police. This climate was worsened by a tense and emotionally charged Presidential campaign trail and election. The statement itself, “power to the people,” has a long history in the civil rights movement, and reflects back on the decades that this fight has been occurring. Bea’s piece serves as a reminder of the injustice this country was built on, and the work that needs to be done to address the lingering effects of that injustice. 

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Artist:

My name is Maia Perry and I am interested in the intersection of art and science. I am currently studying ecology, and I love learning about the intricate and beautiful networks of connections in our world. A lot of my art focuses on environmental issues because I think art is an amazing tool for drawing people in and making information more accessible to a wide audience. 

Artists Description:

This piece is in response to the western pine beetle outbreak that has devastated many ponderosa and Coutler pine trees in the Sierra Nevada mountains. What drew me to this topic was learning from Marisha Farnsworth how the beetles that have been so destructive in the Sierras are actually native to the Sierras. They have only become harmful because of other systems effected by climate change that put extra stress on the trees. There have been many droughts recently, and fires are destroying forests more and more often. This painting shows how something that started off as a working part of the ecosystem has become out of control due to human impacts.

Ava’s Curator’s Note:

I chose to display this art piece by Maia because it show cases her knowledge of the environment and how her art is an attempt to help combat climate change and its effects that are lesser known. I think this art piece also explains how climate change has a domino effect, where small, seemingly insignificant beetles, can change the population of trees in the Sierra Nevada mountains. I found this piece of art to convey how interconnected the climate crisis is and how humans are consistently at the root. Again, I think it is important to showcase this art work to bring attention to the public how dire the climate crisis is.

[activistartofucsc]

Artist:

My name is Maia Perry and I am interested in the intersection of art and science. I am currently studying ecology, and I love learning about the intricate and beautiful networks of connections in our world. A lot of my art focuses on environmental issues because I think art is an amazing tool for drawing people in and making information more accessible to a wide audience. 

Artists Description:

I made this piece, titled “Ghosts,” it features the Monarch butterfly stamp, which I carved out of rubber, and fading white butterflies against a blue sky. These “ghosts”, are meant to represent the monarchs which have disappeared and to call people’s attention to the rapidly declining species. I handed out a fliers which detailed some actions the public can take to aid in monarch butterflies’ survival and recovery. 

Ava’s Curator’s Note:

I chose this art piece because it was made to bring awareness to a disappearing species. It not only serves as a symbolic piece of this monarch butterfly species fading out, but it also serves as an educational piece which gives the audience information on how they can combat the extinction. This piece is also significant in the conversation of Climate Change because, as it is said in the pamphlet that accompanies the artwork, the butterflies are dying out due to human influence to the environment. I think this artwork is an important piece to start the conversation about the climate crisis because as we keep destroying our Earth, we will also be destroying the beautiful animals and insects that live on it.