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Las Cruces, NM- The University Art Museum is thrilled to announce Night Vision, a solo exhibition showcasing the spellbinding sculptures of artist Carolyn Salas. In her site-specific exhibition, Salas crafts multidimensional chromatic objects that oscillate between geometric abstraction and figuration. Inspired by research on healing therapies and dream analysis, Salas composes forms from a fresh lexicon of symbols and materials, referencing ritual, female strength and resilience, mental health, and art history.

The works created by Salas for this exhibition begin as hand-drawn sketches and foam core maquettes. The designs are translated into digital 3D renderings, guiding the scale and placement of each shape and symbol. The final artworks are steel-cut aluminum, marble, wood, and glass using a variety of new printing technologies to mold each puzzle-like piece that retain the jagged edges which preserve the artist's hand.

Night Vision is an experimental exhibition that emerges from site visits to New Mexico State University and represents a personal journey that marks a return to New Mexico, a place where Salas made early developments in her artistic practice. In a new direction, Salas uses the walls and floors of the gallery as sculptural elements, carving human size shapes into protruding pieces of drywall and inviting viewers to sit on geometric benches that grow out of the cement. This installation forms a modernistic dreamscape, a vision that transforms viewers’ conceptions of space, place, and their relationships to objects, form, and materialism.

About the artist:
Carolyn Salas earned a BFA in sculpture from the College of Santa Fe in New Mexico and an MFA from Hunter College in New York. She is represented by Mrs. Gallery in New York and Brintz Gallery in Palm Beach, Florida. Salas has exhibited nationally and internationally, including at The Hole Gallery in New York, NY; the Berkshire Museum in Berkshire, MA; the Torrance Art Museum in Torrance, CA; Ever Gold [Projects] in San Francisco, CA; Leo Konig Gallery, NYC and Kasey Kaplan Gallery, NYC and Towson University in Baltimore, MD; and Páramo Gallery in Guadalajara, Mexico, among others. She has attended residencies at the Abrons Art Center A.I.R. Space Program and The NARS Foundation in New York, NY; Blue Mountain Center in Blue Mountain Lake, NY; the Vermont Studio Center in Johnson, VT; and the Santa Fe Art Institute in Santa Fe, NM. She has also been a Chashama Studio Space recipient and an Elizabeth Foundation Studio Program/Space awardee. Salas was born in Hollywood, CA, and lives and works in Brooklyn and Upstate NY.

Acknowledgements:
Carolyn Salas: Night Vision at NMSU was made possible in part with support from The FUNd at Albuquerque Community Foundation; The Mellon Foundation; The Carl & Marilynn Thoma Foundation; NMSU College of Arts & Sciences; NMSU Department of Art’s Lilian Steinman Visiting Artists & Scholars Lecture Series; Friends of the University Art Museum; Mullennix Art Museum Fund; George and Lucy Gray Endowed Art Fund; several private donors; The Aggie Innovation Space; and NMSU Facilities and Services.

Programming:
On view from September 27, 2024 through March 8, 2025, join us for the opening reception at the University Art Museum on Friday, September 27, 2024, from 5:30 to 7:30pm. An artist lecture by Carolyn Salas will take place Thursday, September 26, at 5:30pm in the Department of Art Bleachers in collaboration with the Lilian Steinman Visiting Artists & Scholars Lecture Series. Admission to all programming is free and open to the public. A detailed calendar with all associated programs and dates is available on the website. For more information, please visit uam.nmsu.edu.

Museum Information:
The UAM is open Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-4pm, at 1308 E. University Ave., Las Cruces, New Mexico, 88003. Admission to all programming is free and open to the public. For more information please visit uam.nmsu.edu.

Image Credit:
Carolyn Salas, Fighand, 2022, Powder-coated aluminum
Photo credit: Lawrence Elizabeth Knox
All Image Credits: UAM Carolyn Salas: Night Vision Images and Credits

Quotes:
“Participating as a visiting artist, engaging in studio visits, delivering lectures and collaborating with students and faculty both in the Sculpture Department and the AGI Innovation Center has been an incredibly enriching experience, allowing me to share my artistic practices and insights in turn gaining fresh perspectives. This time has been greatly inspirational for my studio practice and will hopefully provide a unique vision that shares a universal connection to others and their experiences.” Carolyn Salas
"Carolyn's new work produced for Night Vision provides our community with a fresh and chromatically invigorating perspective on sculptural form, inspired by art history and Salas’ research into the inner workings of our human minds. As a first-generation learner and artist mother inspired by her experiences in New Mexico, Salas relates deeply to our students and community. Through sharing her artistic practice with undergrads and grads from the NMSU Department of Art, Salas has created a unique opportunity to learn from her artistic and professional practices." - Marisa Sage, Director, University Art Museum