FIU’s The Frost Art Museum embraces Peace
Three exhibitions focusing on peace, impermanence, and the human condition

The Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum at Florida International University presents The Missing Peace: Artists Consider the Dalai Lama; En Vista, Eduardo del Valle and Mirta Gómez and l a c u n a i n t e s t i m o n y, Navjot Altaf, three exhibitions promoting peace and focusing on the impermanence of life. Opening reception on October 9, 2009 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
The Missing Peace: Artists Consider the Dalai Lama, curated by Randy Rosenberg of Art Works for Change, the artists were asked to create works in honor of the Dalai Lama and as a result a collection of tapestries, photographs and paintings were created with multiple images, themes and media that mirrors the many roles the Dalai Lama plays within the world. The artists not only explore the Dalai Lama himself, but also discover and explore other multiple features of the leader. The exhibition includes work by Chuck Close, Laurie Anderson, Bill Viola, Jenny Holzer, Anish Kapoor, Richard Gere, Marina Abramovic, and Michele Oka Doner, among others. Each of these artists has a unique interpretation that will inspire, engage, and educate the viewers. The Dalai Lama is a global spiritual leader, temporal leader, and a Buddhist who has demonstrated a path to peace. The exhibition will broaden the appreciation for the Dalai Lama and all the principles and qualities he embodies. The Missing Peace is funded in part by Funding Arts Network and The Charles Wei-Hsun Fu Foundation.
En Vista, a new exhibition by the husband and wife team of photographers Eduardo del Valle & Mirta Gómez takes us on a rare and astonishing journey into the transformation of the human form after death. In the rural cemeteries of Yucatán, Mexico the dead are not normally embalmed before burial. Typically, the remains are unearthed after three years in the ground and transferred to an ossuary or makeshift container for all eternity and for all to view. En Vista offers a strikingly beautiful and memorable selection of 17 chromogenic photographs, printed by the artists from original negatives. The exhibition opens with an insightful excerpt from The Labyrinth of Solitude by Octavio Paz. Their recent photographs are part of the Florida Artists Series and faculty exhibition of the Art and Art History Department at FIU.
Continuing the journey into the human condition is celebrated Indian artist Navjot Altaf who uses photography and videos in her installation l a c u n a i n t e s t i m o n y in an attempt to listen to the testimonies of those affected in communal riots in India’s Gujarat State in 2002. Her video raises questions about whether one can enumerate and describe often opaque and confounding events and how events in India are relevant to violence and oppression throughout the world. Navjot Altaf’s video installations reflect her interest in a broad range of art media, societal issues and social unrest. She lives and works in Mumbai, India.
What: Opening reception of three major exhibitions:
The Missing Peace: Artists Consider the Dalai Lama
En Vista, Eduardo del Valle and Mirta Gómez
l a c u n a i n t e s t i m o n y, Navjot Altaf
When: October 9, 2009 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Where: The Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum
10975 SW 17 Street
Miami, FL 33199
About The Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum at Florida International University
The Frost Art Museum opened its current 46,000-square-foot state of the art building in November, 2008. Over 20,000 people have visited the The Museum in its new building since its opening. Admission to The Museum is always free. The Frost is an AAM accredited museum and Smithsonian affiliate and is located at 10975 SW 17thSt. across from the Blue garage and adjacent to the Wertheim Performing Arts Center on the Modesto A. Maidique Campus. Hours of operation are Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. and Sunday noon-5 p.m. Closed on Mondays and most legal holidays. For more information, please visit thefrost.fiu.edu or call 305-348-2890.
-FIU-

Salustiano, Reincarnation, 2005, Pigments and acrylic resins on canvas, 54 x 120 inches

Eduardo del Valle & Mirta Gómez, En Vista, Yucatan, Mexico, 2001-2006, Photography-Chromogenic Print, 32″ x 40″