Humanity’s story began more than 300,000 years ago when the first homo sapiens appeared in Africa. Over time people’s relationships with nature would evolve as much as it would with art.
“Anthropocene: Human and Nature,” an art exhibit at the Bonita Museum and Cultural Center, delves into 3,000 years of American art through the lenses of climate change and sociopolitical issues. Diana Benavidez, Brian Gibson and 17 other artists explore how humans have affected the planet.
“Piñatas,” a captivating piece by Benavidez, shapes the Mexico party favor as drones and over-sized bottles of pepper spray. These playful sculptures are packed with political messages and cross-border identity.
“Many of the topics I explore include the culture and identity which develops on the border between San Diego and Tijuana like sociopolitical issues, women’s rights and personal issues such as love, heartbreak, and other emotional states,” she said.
Benavidez said contemporary art should incite discussion and protest.
“The piñata depicts storytelling as a nostalgic aspect of our childhood to express ourselves whether it be celebratory or protesting,” she said.
Gibson’s astonishing “Junko Gigantia” depicts a man backpacking through nature who stumbles upon a beautiful finch.
He said he wanted viewers to know his art is about hidden things revealed to artists and then shared with the world, including the connection between humans and animals.
“Art can help bring into focus a visual representation of a complex idea,” he said. “It clarifies and gets people discussing meaning, which leads to better understanding by all.”
Steffa Klein’s “Fire Blankets,” composed of Bismuth on woven glass, offers a futuristic look at creation stories focused on the alchemic tension between elements. Colors pulse between blues and golds in the presence of a stimulated flame, giving the piece life as well as eventual destruction.
Sasha Koozel Reibstein’s piece consisted of high heels with hardware from kitchens and building sites added on to the soles. It illustrates how first-generation Chinese-American women suffered from footbinding. Saving the planet has moved beyond energetic political discussion and into art galleries around the world. “Anthropocene: Human and Nature” is art that creates its own discussion.
