Rick Silva, Western Fronts, 2019, video still (detail)

Human migration is a defining issue of the 21st century, often calling into question the relevance, role, and responsibilities of national borders across the globe. As individuals seek refuge from geopolitical and environmental forces, we become an increasingly globalized community faced with demarcations of all types. Border Control, a weekend-long symposium with corresponding exhibition at University of Michigan’s Stamps Gallery, responds to these conditions,  asking: “How has humanity made sense of the world in relation to borders and boundaries, both physically and psychologically?”

While positioned within (or outside of) defined spaces and identities, human refusal of such literal definitions is paramount. Drawn from practices that are touched or driven by new media, Border Control assembles works by artists who consider geographical contexts, patterns of migration, displacement, and statelessness. Collectively, they offer projects with subterfuge, refusal, and reconsideration of imposed state-sanctioned boundaries.

The exhibition is curated by Allison Collins in collaboration with Carrie Edinger and Srimoyee Mitra and presented in partnership with the New Media Caucus. Artists include Annabel Castro, Mahwish Chisty, Lyn Goeringer, Ryan Griffis & Sarah Ross, Kate Hollenbach, Carrie Hott, X.A. Li, Rebekah Modrak, Abhishek Narula, Joel Ong, Jon Packles, Aislinn E. Pentecost-Farren, Susan Rochester, José Carlos Teixeira, Alex Turner, and Sabato Visconti.

Short film contributions were made by Nadav Assor, Anxious to Make (Liat Berdugo + Emily Martinez), Yaminay Chaudhri, Andrew Demirjian, José Guadalupe Garza & Miriam Ruíz, and Rick Silva.

This exhibition is part of Border Control: New Media Caucus 2019 Symposium, taking place September 19-21, 2019 on the University of Michigan campus, hosted by the Penny W. Stamps School of Art & Design.

Other opening weekend events include:

For more information, visit stamps.umich.edu/border_control.