Global/National – The Order of Chaos is an exhibition that “addresses the anxieties of economics, environmental tragedies, and societies of control that define the chaos of globalization. It explores these social issues in an aesthetic way to demystify the notion of art only as an ornamental production. This vision includes images from abstraction to figuration, from direct messages to esoteric thoughts,” explains Co-Founder/Artistic Director Papo Colo. The exhibition investigates how local artists from a variety of backgrounds are placed in relation to the rest of the world. Seen through a global lens, this exhibition explores the multiple cultures that populate our general culture and how the local and national are inextricably linked to the global.

This exhibition examines the tensions of uncontrollable forces that are dislocating our society to redefine a new civilization. The artworks reflect how the national contains global concerns, searching inside our culture to project our global position. This exhibition tells the story of those concerns and new ways in which we can order the chaos.

Conceived by Papo Colo. Curated by Jeanette Ingberman and Papo Colo.

Artists: John Ahearn, Tina Barney, Jimmie Durham, Nicky Enright, Rico Gatson, Kate Gilmore, Guerra de la Paz, Charles Juhasz-Alvarado, Saeri Kiritani, Tseng Kwong Chi, Robin Lasser, Rebecca Loyche, Miguel Luciano, Jonathan Matas, Mary Mattingly, Eve Mosher, Chris Sollars, Jade Townsend, Jason Villegas, Bernard Williams, Martin Wong, O Zhang, François Ziliff

Events: A Conversation with Hua Hsu and Greg Tate Wed, March 31, 7pm – 9pm Exit Underground

Writer and professor of English Hua Hsu and cultural critic and musician Greg Tate will talk about their views on art, commerce, race and globalization. Using the work in Global / National—The Order of Chaos as jumping off points, the speakers will engage in a free-wheeling discussion about the state of American culture at a time when the “local” is being threatened by globalization. $5 suggested donation. Cash bar.