Reflections on Exile: Opening Reception

Curated by Jeanette Alanis, Reflections on Exile examines displacement, restrictive or forced movement, and the after effects of war and persecution from the lens of Bay Area artists. Inspired by Edward Said’s description of exile as "the unhealable rift forced between a human being and a native place, between the self and its true home”, selected artists will offer a creative lens on how exile has personally affected their lives in order to provide an alternate path forward of open borders.

Reflections On Exile is global in its scale as it highlights challenging elements between human and land separation focused on elements of identity, diaspora, migration, and resilience. The exhibition guides us through an on-going crisis in which has reached all spectrums of locality; especially in the Bay Area. Each work was inspired by personal content of present day displacement challenges. These recurring dynamics cause disastrous divisions against the land and its people appears hopeless for humanity. Being alongside this journey attracts support; this is where Reflections on Exile can ignite change.


This exhibition’s theme is focused on all existing forms of forced human separation from the land. Politically, these destabilizations remain present in the most historic U.S. occupancy over Native land to the new wall construction designed to prevent migration from Mexico. Exile became a state of existence for these artists and subjects when it should have only been a temporary journey.

Reflections on Exile features a visual arts exhibition with an opening reception on January 11, 2020 from 7-10pm.

Exhibiting Artists:

Najah Alboushi
Stephanie Andrews and Fabián Leyva-Barragán
Ellen Bepp
Paola de la Calle
Roya Ebtehaj
Uli Golub
Alexander Hernandez
Stephanie Huang
Amanda Lee
Lydia Nakashima Degarrod
Elisa Ortega Montilla
Mehregan Pezeshki
Melanie Piech
Ghazal Rahimi
Cenorina Ramirez
Zoe Sandoval
Anna Talhami
Angelica Turner
Rupy Tut
Rochelle Youk