“Shoot at Blue Sky” references a hunting phrase that aims to keep hunters safe from friendly fire, says artist Rosemary DesPlas.
Contact: Ann Hatch
214-378-1819;
ahatch@dcccd.edu
For immediate release — April 8, 2014
(DALLAS) — When art takes wing, it can fly into the hearts and memories of those who see it. When it fills the sky, that art represents the works of local artist and El Centro College faculty member Rosemary DesPlas; those works are part of an exhibit set to open April 15 in Shenyang, China, titled “Half the Sky: Intersections in Social Practice Art.”
DesPlas, who leaves for China as the exhibit’s installation director, also attends the show as a delegate of the Women’s Caucus for Art. The exhibit, which comprises works by 42 artists and essayists, is a cultural exchange in partnership between WCA and the LuXun Academy of Fine Arts in Shenyang.
The exchange draws on Chairman Mao Zedong’s statement that “Women can hold up half the sky” — a theme that continues to inspire social change across the globe and to explore how art can support those efforts, according to WCA.
The exhibition will be staged at LuXun Academy from April 15-30, and related cultural programs are scheduled from April 15-17. DesPlas will visit China and oversee the installation — which features painting, photography, performance, video and sculpture — starting April 10.
DesPlas said, “I have not exhibited in China before, and I am excited to be involved in this cultural exchange. Being a WCA delegate for ‘Half the Sky: Intersections in Social Practice Art’ allows me the opportunity to engage in face-to-face interactions with artists from another country. As an art historian, I have an appreciation for different cultures, respecting the history and legacy offered by each.”