Cecilia Vicuña: Sonoran Quipu

Celebrate a new exhibition from internationally celebrated artist and poet Cecilia Vicuña. Weaving together natural and human debris from the region, the artist invites viewers to consider our interconnected relationship to the environment and each other. 

On behalf of the artist, MOCA strongly encourages all attendees to wear a mask at the opening. 

MEMBERS PREVIEW

FRIDAY, JANUARY 27 | 6-7PM

+ Curator remarks and natural wine toast sponsored by Pearly Baker
MOCA Members register here or become a MOCA Member today!

PUBLIC OPENING + QUIPU OF ENCOUNTERS PARTICIPATORY RITUAL

FRIDAY, JANUARY 27 | 7–9PM

+ 7PM: Seed Ceremony for the Desert
Vicuña will lead attendees in a ritual as a part of the Sonoran Quipu. All are invited to participate, to bring an instrument, and to join in making a collective sound. 

+ 8PM: Opening Reception
Celebrate the Sonoran Quipu with Barrio Beer, food, and music.

READING And CONVERSATION: CECILIA VICUÑA WITH ROSA ALCALÁ & DANIEL BORZUTZKY

SATURDAY, JANUARY 28 | 12-1:30PM
+ Debut of a new broadside publication by Vicuña
This reading is co-presented by the University of Arizona’s Poetry Center.

About the artist
Cecilia Vicuña (b.1948 in Santiago, Chile; lives and works in New York and Santiago) is a poet, artist, filmmaker, and activist. Her work addresses pressing concerns of the modern world, including ecological destruction, human rights, and cultural homogenization. In the last year alone, solo exhibitions of her work have been organized at a number of major institutions, including the Tate Modern, London, United Kingdom; Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, NY; and Museo de Arte Miguel Urrutia (MAMU), Bogotá, Colombia. Vicuña is also included in The Milk of Dreams, 59th International Art Exhibition, Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy, and was awarded a Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement. Vicuña is the author of 30 volumes of art and poetry.

Major support for the exhibition is provided by The Diane & Bruce Halle Foundation; National Endowment for the Arts; The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts; Arizona Humanities; and Lehmann Maupin. Generous support provided by VIA Art Fund and Wagner Foundation; Barrio Brewing Foundation; and MOCA Tucson’s Board of Trustees, Ambassador Council, and Members. 

The Sonoran Quipu exhibition partner is The University of Arizona Poetry Center. 

Project contributors are ARC (Artist Residency Cooperative), BICAS, Mission Garden, Native Seeds/SEARCH, Tohono O'odham Community College, and everyone who offered materials to the Sonoran Quipu.