7250 Mesa College Dr., FA 103.
Gallery Director: Alessandra Moctezuma
This project was first presented at the Mesa College Art Gallery in San Diego. July – Aug 2023
Also presented at Snakebite Gallery, Tucson, AZ. May – June 2024
Galería Bejnamin Serrano, Casa de Cultura Altamira. Tijuana, BC. Aug – September 2024
Rebel, Francisco Eme digital photograph printed on aluminum
The urban area of San Diego is unique because its crisscrossed by canyons; nature resists as homes and developments encroach on the native ecology. When Francisco Eme and his wife Monica, moved to a new house, the wild area behind the building looked like a very dry steep slope with little potential. During the pandemic, artist Francisco turned his attention to this canyon. He removed invasive plants and nurtured the growth of indigenous species; he observed the flora and the fauna, listened to the call of coyotes, birds, and recorded their comings and goings. The work in this exhibit is inspired by this act of eco-resistance. In the past 5 years, Francisco has taken hundreds of photographs, videos and audio recordings of the canyon. He has collected objects, organic and manmade, and created others. These documents and artifacts, are the foundational materials for the artworks in the exhibition.
The Resistance of Echo & La Eco-Resistencia turned into a multimedia art project, an urban ecology study focusing on the biological dynamics of a canyon, situated in a suburb of San Diego. This project connects us with the activity in the canyon, as it resists “guerrilla style” against the monstrosity of urbanization, against human intervention. The artistic process also highlights the spiritual connection between a human, and a small oasis of wildlife.
Francisco Eme studies the canyon using a scientific approach and data visualization techniques. In one of the installations, a sensor registers the amount of CO² particles in the air and produces sound to quantify the effects. Animal sounds emerge from speakers-vessels molded with the clay from the canyon. A video intersperces aerial views with thermal camera captures of Nature’s nocturnal life. An altar memorializes the remains of a tree, a wooden heart that represents both mourning and acceptance. The exhibit also presents the transmutation of human-made objects back into nature, or the transformation of creatures into magical instruments.
This project was also envisioned as a way to collaborate with craftsmen and artists from Mexico and U.S.A. Consultations with biologists and botanists have taken place along the project as well. The exhibition dives into the complex dynamics and tensions to find an ecological balance within the small wild areas enveloped by big city civilization. The exhibition also incorporates Mexican crafts, urban myths and personal experiences to connect the animal and the human, the scientific and the spiritual.
Links:
Video journal of the canyon https://www.youtube.com/@telecanon-canyongardentv6607
Instagram Journal https://www.instagram.com/canyon_garden/
Artist Website: https://franciscoeme.com/
About Francisco Eme: Francisco Morales (1981) is from Mexico City and Oaxaca, México. He currently lives and works in San Diego, California. Francisco is a music composer, artist and curator. As an artist he mainly works with sound, but various disciplines are integrated into his practice, such as photography, video and installation. Music compositions and artworks have been presented in museums, galleries and concert halls in Mexico, the United States, Europe and South America. He has released albums as a soloist and collaborations in various genres, mainly electroacoustic, experimental & electronic pop music. Francisco is the Arts & Culture Director at Casa Familiar’s The FRONT Arte & Cultura, a binational art space in the San Diego, US – Tijuana, Mex border region, where he curates art exhibitions, workshops, concerts and performances.