Southern Exposure (2008)

Southern Exposure brought eight Latin American artists—from Argentina and Chile—to the Dumbo Arts Center in New York City for a two-week residency program, followed by a seven-week exhibition that opened Sunday, November 30, 2008. An afterparty was hosted at Galapagos Kuntshall, where DJ Cowboy Mark played, and a curator’s walkthrough was held on December 11, 2008.

Argentina and Chile are two neighboring South American countries located at 34º00’ S, 64º00’ W and 30º00’ S, 71º00’ W, respectively, over 4000 miles south of New York City. Despite their close geographical proximity, these countries—divided by the Andes Mountains—have marked historical and cultural differences, which inform their creative outputs.

The Dumbo Arts Center (DAC) will present for the first time the work of artists from both of these countries as they spend two weeks prior to the opening of the exhibition producing site-specific works in the gallery space that respond to the history and redevelopment of the DUMBO neighborhood. The artists in the show have been brought together to a common ground in Brooklyn as part of this two-week experiment in which they must live and produce work amongst each other. They will document their experience in New York, many for the first time, by creating work that is an immediate interpretation of their sudden exposure to the City.

The curators continue to acknowledge the support of The American Center Foundation – Frederick B. Henry (Chairman), Antoine Schweitzer (Program Manager); Yona Backer; Mariana Davenport; Lida Geh; Amy Goldrich; Ana Sokoloff; Dean Valentine; and d. yee.