Join us for a free, hands-on family workshop with artist Blue McRight that addresses the urgent problem of plastic pollution on our shorelines and in our oceans. On the Beach is inspired by two paintings on view in the exhibition Picturing Summer, prompting viewers to ask what the phrase “on the beach” means today. Participants will examine these works in the gallery and consider their connection to the issue of plastic pollution by creating their own suspended vertical sculptures made by knotting, twisting, and looping salvaged plastic rope, netting, and other debris.
About the Teaching Artist:
Blue McRight is a visual artist, scuba diver, and environmentalist who is continually on the lookout for discards that she considers “fallen urban fruit” from today’s consumer culture.
McRight’s knotted and woven sculptures and installations explore underwater ecosystems. They utilize found plastic trash such as straws, mesh bags, rope, and hairbands alongside salvaged fishing nets, fish and crab traps, and bait baskets. The artist states, “I am dedicated to creating a new visual, metaphoric language about water and the ocean. In ways that are provocative, but more poetic than didactic, my work engages with major environmental issues including sea level rise, plastic pollution, and climate change.”
About Langson IMCA
Langson IMCA explores and celebrates artists and their capacity to develop new forms and ideas in response to the California experience. It collects, conserves, and generates scholarship for modern and contemporary art inspired by the State’s diverse societal, cultural, and natural environments. As an institution dedicated to becoming the epicenter of California Art, Langson IMCA presents programming that strives to provoke questions around an expansive understanding of art making inspired by the Golden State.
Langson IMCA relies on the generosity of our supporters to ensure that museum admission and public programs like this remain free and accessible to all. An online donation to Langson IMCA can be made here; other ways to give can be found here.
Date: Saturday, August 3, 2024
Time: 10 am – 1 pm
Venue: Langson IMCA, 18881 Von Karman Avenue, Irvine
Parking Airport Tower structure is free for two hours with validation
Please email imca@uci.edu with questions or requests for accommodations.
Call for materials:
Langson IMCA invites the community to assist with collecting and delivering plastic waste materials to the museum. This is also a wonderful way to help keep plastic detritus off our beaches!
Materials must be washed with soap or dish detergent and water, and dried before being delivered to the museum. Deliveries will be accepted during museum hours through the date and time of the workshop.
Materials can come from households or through collection on beaches or other natural environments. We are looking for materials such as plastic lids, toys, mesh produce bags and other types of netting, elastic hairbands, rope and cord, and any other discarded plastic items. Please NO cigarette butts, lighters, plastic bags, or Styrofoam.
The Surfrider Foundation is an excellent organization to contact regarding local beach clean-ups to join. Remember to always bring a plastic bag to collect these future art supplies!