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Five artists explore “Civil Defense” in exhibit opening
Five local and regional artists will explore the lasting impact of the atom bomb on society with the exhibit “Civil Defense” in the Antelope Valley College Art Gallery, 3041 W. Ave. K, Lancaster, Oct. 3-31.
The exhibit will feature the work of Eric Ward, Edwin Vasquez, Warren Scherich, Charles Hood and Valerie Freeman. The artists use a multitude of media including assemblage, painting, printing, experimental video, photography and installations.
“When historians and journalists reviewed the 20th century, they voted the dropping of the atom bomb on Hiroshima as the top news event of the past 100 years, ranking it even higher than the landing on the Moon,” said Hood. That legacy continues.
“As a nation, our feelings are ambivalent and stratified, depending in part on our age. For our parents and grandparents, people who lived through World War II, their collective feeling was ‘Thank God for the atom bomb.’ After the Cold War, however, the ‘Enola Gay’ and its terrifying mission have been seen in a different, more chilling light.”
The show poses many difficult questions and encourages viewers to find their own responses, according to Hood, an AVC English professor and author of “The Half-Life of Salt: Voices from the Enola Gay.”
For instance, did President Truman drop the bomb not to end the war with Japan, but to let the Soviets know the United States had new and terrible capabilities?
“Civil Defense” explores the social, psychological and environmental impact on several artists as they examine these issues and take the viewers on a journey of some of the beauty and complexity behind this topic.
An earlier version of the show hung last year in the Up Front Gallery in Ventura. As Hood said, “Even if you saw that one, this one is better. We have new, better prints and three more artists. We really got it right this time!”
Gallery shows are free. An opening reception with the artists will be held 7 p.m. Oct. 3 in the gallery. Hours are 9 a.m.-9 p.m., Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m., Friday, and 11 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday. Call the gallery at (661) 722-6300, ext. 6215 for details.
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