USF Contemporary Art Museum To Host 2-Person Exhibit

TAMPA, FL — On Monday, Aug. 26 at 10 a.m., the USF Contemporary Art Museum, part of the USF Institute for Research in Art in the College of The Arts, opens its doors for The Return of the Real, a two-person exhibition featuring the work of New York-based sculptor Robert Lazzarini and Los Angeles-based artist Rodrigo Valenzuela.

These two U.S.-based artists are distinctly committed to re-presentation as a mode of visual experimentation and reasoning.

The concept of “re-presentation” is central to contemporary art today. The hyphen is intentionally added to destabilize the normal reading of the word “representation” as a transparent record of “reality.” Because all re-presentations are constructions from a particular subject position, no re-presentation can be absolutely objective or universal.

In the words of critic Hal Foster—from whom the title of this exhibition is borrowed—the work of both of these artists is grounded in the materiality of actual bodies, objects and social sites. Lazzarini’s and Valenzuela’s artworks look to establish new ways of seeing critically at a time that demands a profoundly flexible and skeptical understanding of seemingly established facts, fabricated fears and “fake news.”

Programs associated with The Return of the Real exhibition will include a conversation with artists Robert Lazzarini and Rodrigo Valenzuela, and CAM Curator-at-large Christian Viveros-Fauné; a symposium featuring artists, scholars and journalists; a curator-led tour; a student showcase; an open mic night; and a concert in the galleries.

The Return of the Real is curated by Christian Viveros-Fauné and organized by USF Contemporary Art Museum.

Featured events:

• Artists’ Conversation and Exhibition Reception Sept. 6 from 6 to 9 p.m. at USFCAM
• Symposium - "My Perception Is Your Reality: Shared Truths In the Age of Fake News, Alternative Facts and Fabricated Fear" Sept. 26 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the USF School of Music Conference Center, MUS172.
• Art & Ice - Discover CAM: Week of Welcome (WOW) Event
• August 28, 3–5pm, USFCAM
• This welcome back event invites students to connect and engage with the exhibition, enjoy icy treats and participate in an art challenge for prizes! Sponsored in part by the CAM Club.
• The Return of the Real Curator’s Tour Sept. 25 from 7 to 8 p.m. at USFCAM with curator-at-large
• Christian Viveros-Fauné leading a gallery tour and discussion of the exhibition.
• Cam Club Exhibition Tour Oct. 2 at 2 p.m. at USFCAM, led by the CAM Club
• Art Thursday: Student Showcase Oct. 17 from 6 to 8 p.m. at USFCAM
• Spoken Word and Open Mic Night - Poetry of Resistance Oct. 25 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at the Lector Wine Shop & Social Club, 305 E. Polk St., Tampa
• Art Thursday: Concert in the Galleries Nov. 7 from 8 to 10 p.m. at USFCAM
• Art Thursday: Spoken Word with Heard ‘Em Say Nov. 14 from 6 to 8 p.m. at USFCAM.