Transcending Physicality: Artist Talk
with Alex Arzt, Carolina Maki Kitagawa Frisby, and Kiana Honarmand
Event Details
Wednesday, October 25 | 6:30-8:30 pm (Doors at 6:00 pm)
Free and open to the public
Transcending Physicality: The Essence of Place is a group exhibition curated by artist and educator Minoosh Zomorodinia that explores the complicated concept of "place" and the interplay of relationships and interactions that shape and define places. Join exhibition artists Alex Arzt, Carolina Maki Kitagawa Frisby, and Kiana Honarmand for a conversation exploring the themes behind their work and the exhibition itself.
Moderated by Kathy Zarur, Associate Professor of Art History at Skyline College.
About the Panelists
Kathy Zarur (moderator) is an educator and culture worker in San Francisco. Through courses, exhibitions, and conferences, she seeks to highlight artists and histories that have historically been sidelined. Preferring metaphor over representation, her approach to exhibition making centers around place to explore topics including belonging, identity, and the landscape. Previously at the Sharjah Biennial in the United Arab Emirates, she was an assistant curator and producer of live art. More recently as an independent curator, she has created exhibitions for the Museum of the African Diaspora, San Francisco Arts Commission, Minnesota Street Project, and SOMArts. She has organized conferences with San Francisco State University at the de Young and Asian Art Museum. Her writings and editorial work appear in Art in America, Broadsheet, and a Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts publication with Sternberg Press. She is Associate Professor of Art History at Skyline College, Fellow of Modern and Contemporary South West Asian and North African art at Smarthistory.org, and a board member of Arab.AMP. Kathy has a PhD in Art History and a Certificate in Museum Studies from the University of Michigan. www.kathyzarur.com
Alex Arzt is an interdisciplinary artist, educator, administrator, and gardener based in Oakland, CA. From 2018-2022, she was an Affiliate Artist at The Headlands Center for the Arts. She is a founder of the artist collective Whiz World and runs a Risograph press called A Magic Mountain, which publishes artist books. Her publishing projects are in the collections of libraries such as Getty Institute and SFMOMA. She has been awarded grants from The Puffin Foundation (2018, 2022) and The East Bay Community Foundation (2018). She has a BFA from Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA from Virginia Commonwealth University and has since attended residencies at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Art, PLAYA Summer Lake, Hambidge Center, and Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. From 2015-2023, she taught courses in photography, time-based media and book making at UC Davis, UC Berkeley, San Francisco Art Institute, and VCU. She works as a grant writer for non-profit arts organizations. www.alexarzt.com
Carolina Maki Kitagawa Frisby lives between the United States and Mexico. Her practice reflects personal quotidian moments that highlight the anti-patriarchal scholarship of value, protection, and provocation through sculpture, ceramics, performance, and the occasional photography. Kitagawa Frisby’s work has been supported by the Confluence Center for Creative Inquiry at the University of Arizona (2016) and residencies at Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture (2022), Ox Bow School of Art (2018 and 2020), and Anderson Ranch Art Center (2018). @carolina_maki_kitagawa_frisby
Kiana Honarmand is an Iranian-born artist whose work delves into the complexities of her cultural identity, the violation of women's rights in Iran, censorship, surveillance, and the Western perception of the SWANA identity. In 2012, she relocated to the United States to pursue a Master of Fine Arts degree at Penn State University. Currently residing and working in the San Francisco Bay Area, California, Kiana's work has been featured and reviewed in publications such as the Washington Post, Hyperallergic, and Voice of America. Kiana’s art has been exhibited in numerous renowned venues both nationally and internationally. These include the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, CA; NUMU New Museum in Los Gatos, CA; VisArts in Rockville, MD; Moving Poets Novilla in Berlin, Germany; HAMZIANPOUR & KIA in Los Angeles, CA; Torpedo Factory Art Center in Alexandria, VA; Woman Made Gallery in Chicago, IL; San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles in San Jose, CA; Metal Museum, Memphis, TN; San Luis Obispo Museum of Art, CA; Lite-Haus Galerie, Berlin, Germany; Lorimoto Gallery, Ridgewood, NY; 709 Gallery, Pittsburgh, PA; Robert and Elaine Stein Galleries, Dayton, OH; and many others. www.kianahonarmand.com
