Outdoor Art in Pandemic Times: Intersections

At a time when indoor galleries are off-limits, public art in public space is more precious than ever. Join UC Berkeley Future Histories Lab creative director Susan Moffat for a live video conversation with five artists who have created installations about race, place, and nature along the iconic walking paths of the Berkeley Hills.

Dawline-Jane Oni-Eseleh, Kim Bennett, Karin Dahl, Jessica Sabogal, and recent UC Berkeley grad Connie Zheng have created pieces using rope, repurposed pallets, artificial plants, and a metal historic district-style sign that is not what it appears. Hidden along the paths in residential neighborhoods, they have attracted many curious visitors and sparked conversations about Ohlone territory, "invasive" plants, and the invisibility of white privilege.

The exhibition is up through the end of September and was curated by Hadley Dynak and sponsored by the Berkeley Civic Arts and Berkeley Path Wanderers.

In her installation, Connie Zheng further developed ideas she explored in the UC Berkeley MFA program and in her work in the Global Urban Humanities Certificate program. The flows of materials and capital in the global supply chain are a recurring theme for Zheng. For this Intersections exhibition, she made 95 "spirit tablets" painted with images of endangered plants endemic to the East Bay, along with acknowledgements of the Huichin Ohlone history of the area. The tablets are painted on repurposed wood from pallets that may have traveled the globe before arriving here.