{"id":154469,"date":"2023-03-23T15:46:43","date_gmt":"2023-03-23T15:46:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/culture.org\/?p=154469"},"modified":"2023-03-23T15:46:43","modified_gmt":"2023-03-23T15:46:43","slug":"minerva-cuevas-new-exhibition-visualizing-the-climate-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/culture.org\/news\/minerva-cuevas-new-exhibition-visualizing-the-climate-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"Minerva Cuevas’ New Exhibition: Visualizing the Climate Crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Minerva Cuevas, a Mexico City-based artist, is taking a unique approach to visualizing the climate crisis in her latest exhibition, “in gods we trust,” held at Kurimanzutto\u2019s New York outpost.<\/span><\/p>\n <!-- <div class=\"container-c\"> -->\r\n <!-- <div class=\"row justify-content-between\"> -->\r\n <!-- <div class=\"col-post-800\"> -->\r\n <!-- start html -->\r\n <div class=\"blockquote-wapper\">\r\n <div>\r\n <span class=\"text_quot\">\r\n <p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cuevas has a history of using her art to draw attention to global and local issues, such as food shortages, capitalism, fair labor practices, and climate change.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>\r\n\r\n <div class=\"quot_icon\">\r\n <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-content\/themes\/culture\/icons\/i_quot.svg\" type=\"image\/svg+xml\">\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"quot_tick\" src=\"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-content\/themes\/culture\/icons\/i_quot_tri.svg\" type=\"image\/svg+xml\">\r\n <\/div>\r\n <!-- end html -->\r\n <!-- <\/div> -->\r\n <!-- <\/div> -->\r\n <!-- <\/div> -->\r\n \n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shifting away from clich\u00e9d imagery such as graphs and starving polar bears, Cuevas insists on representing the companies responsible for causing climate change, including oil companies like Shell and financial institutions like Chase Bank.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Uncovering the Roots of Climate Change through Art<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The exhibition features a series of appropriated works that display ads from the oil and gas industry in the 1950s and 1960s.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One such work showcases Mobil oil flowing down a snow-banked stream, while another promotes Shell\u2019s new \u201crecipe\u201d for asphalt.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By revealing these historical ads, Cuevas aims to expose the oil companies’ decades-long denial of the link between fossil fuel combustion and climate change.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cuevas’ art-making process is grounded in intense research, and her works often incorporate symbols of the oil industry within her local context of Mexico.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She explores the connection between ancient art practices that utilized tar and the current oil industry in Mexico, highlighting climate change as not just a global issue but an act of pollution that affects a country\u2019s past, present, and future.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>The Role of Artists in Times of Crisis<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While discussing her work and the role of artists in times of crisis, Cuevas emphasizes the need for political and ethical responsibility among artists.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She believes that although no single artwork or book can transform society, art and culture have the potential to generate change, albeit in an immeasurable way.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cuevas has a history of using her art to draw attention to global and local issues, such as food shortages, capitalism, fair labor practices, and climate change.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Her art often takes the form of small interventions that challenge larger systems, empowering people and creating a sense of freedom through action.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The artist’s commitment to social change through her work is evident in her previous projects, such as Del Montte\u2014Bananeras (2003\/10), where she altered the Fresh Del Monte Produce brand’s spelling to reference the Guatemalan military president, Jos\u00e9 Efra\u00edn R\u00edos Montt, responsible for the genocide of the indigenous Ixil group.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cuevas uses recognizable logos to point out the corrupt practices of corporations, further emphasizing the connection between art and social change.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The “in gods we trust” exhibition is on view until April 15, offering visitors a chance to engage with Cuevas’ thought-provoking art and consider the role of corporations in perpetuating the climate crisis.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>More About Cuevas<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Minerva Cuevas is a contemporary artist born in 1975 in Mexico City. Throughout her career, she has participated in numerous international exhibitions, including solo shows and biennials.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One of Cuevas’ most notable projects is the ongoing non-profit Mejor Vida Corp (Better Life Corporation), which she describes as a “cartography of resistance.”<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This project includes various actions, such as giving away subway tickets, student I.D. cards, or altering barcodes at grocery stores, to create a sense of freedom and empower people to challenge bureaucratic systems.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cuevas’ art is rooted in thorough research and a deep understanding of the issues she addresses.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By using a variety of mediums and techniques, she creates thought-provoking works that encourage viewers to consider the impact of larger systems on society and the environment.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Article In a Snapshot<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Minerva Cuevas’ latest exhibition, “in gods we trust,” aims to visualize the climate crisis by representing the companies responsible for causing it, including oil companies and financial institutions.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The exhibition features appropriated works that display ads from the oil and gas industry in the 1950s and 1960s, highlighting the companies’ decades-long denial of the link between fossil fuel combustion and climate change.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cuevas’ art-making process is grounded in intense research and often incorporates symbols of the oil industry within her local context of Mexico to emphasize the connection between ancient art practices and the current oil industry.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She believes that artists have a responsibility to address political and ethical issues, and that art and culture have the potential to generate change, albeit in an immeasurable way.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The “in gods we trust” exhibition is on view until April 15, inviting visitors to engage with Cuevas’ thought-provoking art and consider the role of corporations in perpetuating the climate crisis.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Minerva Cuevas, a Mexico City-based artist, is taking a unique approach to visualizing the climate crisis in her latest exhibition, “in gods we trust,” held at Kurimanzutto\u2019s New York outpost. Shifting away from clich\u00e9d imagery such as graphs and starving polar bears, Cuevas insists on representing the companies responsible for causing climate change, including oil […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3588],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-154469","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/154469"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=154469"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/154469\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=154469"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=154469"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=154469"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}