PINE BLUFF, Ark. — Artist Erica Daborn captures the attention of the public via 13 large-scale charcoal-on-canvas murals that explore the critical issues facing the planet. Her artwork records fictitious historical events based on issues relevant to climate change.
“Dialogues with Mother Earth: Drawing to Save the Planet” by Erica Daborn opens Friday, Feb. 23, with a free public reception from 5-7 p.m. (NOTE: The opening date and reception have moved from the date previously promoted; Friday, Feb. 23 is correct.) The exhibition will be on view in the William H. Kennedy Jr. and International Paper galleries at the Arts and Science Center for Southeast Arkansas, 701 S. Main St. through Aug. 16.
The exhibition is sponsored by the Arkansas Humanities Council, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Arts and Science Center for Southeast Arkansas Endowment Fund, and the Pine Bluff Advertising & Promotion Commission. The reception is sponsored by MK Distributors.
Daborn was born in England and received her Master of Fine Arts degree from the Royal College of Art in London. She moved to the United States in 1984 and permanently to Mexico in 2015.
Since 2016, the murals from “Dialogues With Mother Earth” have been exhibited in eight major museums in the U.S. and Mexico, including the Daum Museum of Contemporary Art in Sedalia, Missouri; the International Museum of Art and Science in McAllen, Texas; Olin College of Engineering in Needham, Massachusetts; Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts; Centro de Las Artes de San Luis Potosí in San Luis Potosí, Mexico; Museo de Ciudad de Querétaro in Querétaro, Mexico; Museo Iconográfico del Quijote in Guanajuato, Mexico; and El Centro Nigromante Bellas Artes in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.
“The Arts & Science Center is proud to showcase the profound work of artist Erica Daborn for the next six months in one of our largest and most important exhibitions to date,” said Kevin Haynie, curator of collections and exhibitions. “The scale of Erica’s work demands attention, and the themes within each mural cry out for your direct action in working to be a part of the solution regarding many of the crises that we face more directly with each passing day.”
Haynie continued, “Climate change, the culture of consumerism, and their numerous consequences impact all life, and we must strive to confront these complex issues head-on. Erica has spent years developing and sharing this work with the public hoping to be a catalyst for awareness and change within the communities that have the wonderful opportunity to be engaged by her art.”
The exhibition also aims to draw connections between the themes of the artwork and the Arkansas Delta, exploring the impact of climate change in the area. Stories from the community of floods, drought, and other climate-related issues will be collected from the public and played on a video monitor in one of the galleries, incorporating the region’s agrarian history into the exhibition’s narrative.
The ARTx3 Campus will also offer a hands-on program for youth to explore how agriculture has contributed to environmental changes in their own region. The program will be implemented as part of ARTx3’s after-school program, inviting schools from the area for field trips.
For more information, contact Haynie at khaynie@artx3.org or call 870-536-3375.
For more information about Daborn and to view more of her work, visit her website ericadaborn.com.
This show is part of the Arts & Science Center’s 2024 exhibition program. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Arts & Science Center making its home on Main Street. For more information about current and upcoming exhibitions on the ARTx3 Campus, visit artx3.org/exhibitions.