Louis Hock | a wall
Curated By Chon Noriega
Presented By UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center
Curated By Chon Noriega
Presented By UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center
THE WORK
Made from recycled paper pulp bricks, Louis Hock’s temporary installation, “a wall”, will extend 90 feet through the venue interrupting the visual experience and disorienting the circulation of visitors within the space. This installation urges visitors to consider current political discourse around borders and immigration as they experience a familiar space that is visually and physically divided.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Louis Hock, a multi-media artist who grew up in American border towns and now lives near San Diego, California. spent much of his career tearing walls down in one way or another.
From the late 1970s and on, he has made videos documenting the daily struggles of the Mexican immigrants who were his neighbors. In 1993, he teamed up with Elizabeth Sisco and David Avalos to offer a “tax rebate”, handing out $10 bills to Mexican day laborers in California for their unrecognized contributions to the American economy. And in 1997, he cut a hole in the steel fence bordering the Mexican city Tijuana “so that people could kiss, or hold their babies from one side to another, or exchange tacos,” he said.
Louis Hock’s artwork – films, video tapes, and media installations – have been exhibited in solo shows at numerous national and international art institutions including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.
Made from recycled paper pulp bricks, Louis Hock’s temporary installation, “a wall”, will extend 90 feet through the venue interrupting the visual experience and disorienting the circulation of visitors within the space. This installation urges visitors to consider current political discourse around borders and immigration as they experience a familiar space that is visually and physically divided.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Louis Hock, a multi-media artist who grew up in American border towns and now lives near San Diego, California. spent much of his career tearing walls down in one way or another.
From the late 1970s and on, he has made videos documenting the daily struggles of the Mexican immigrants who were his neighbors. In 1993, he teamed up with Elizabeth Sisco and David Avalos to offer a “tax rebate”, handing out $10 bills to Mexican day laborers in California for their unrecognized contributions to the American economy. And in 1997, he cut a hole in the steel fence bordering the Mexican city Tijuana “so that people could kiss, or hold their babies from one side to another, or exchange tacos,” he said.
Louis Hock’s artwork – films, video tapes, and media installations – have been exhibited in solo shows at numerous national and international art institutions including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.
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