Unsettled Provisions | No Present to Remember

This fall, Ogden Contemporary Arts presents two solo exhibitions for artists whose dual cultural identities and journey to American citizenship shape their work and artistic practice. MyLoan Dinh: Unsettled Provisions is presented in OCA’s main gallery, while Nancy Rivera: No Present to Remember occupies the upper gallery. Both shows run from November 3rd, 2023 through January 14th, 2024.

MyLoan Dinh, who was born in Vietnam and is currently based in North Carolina, is a multidisciplinary artist whose work reflects on her experiences as a woman of color and former refugee, addressing everyday manifestations of transcultural identity, memory and displacement. Nancy Rivera is a Salt Lake City-based artist whose explorations in photography, fiber and sculpture bridge her roots in Mexico with her life in America. Similar to Dinh, she is interested in exploring her layered identity through the use of juxtaposed materials, memory and hybrid themes that weave together threads of her past and present life.

“We hope this curation sheds light on the experiences of refugees and immigrants as they find a place in our communities, and how that journey affects their lives going forward,” says Venessa Castagnoli, OCA’s Executive Director. “We paired MyLoan Dinh and Nancy Rivera together because their work is family-focused yet also illustrates the artists’ individual journeys of becoming a citizen, both in other parts of the country and here in our home state of Utah.”

The exhibitions open for Ogden’s First Friday Art Stroll on November 3^rd, 6-9pm at OCA. On opening night at 6pm, Dinh will present Longing for Harmonies, a public performance piece that will remain part of her show as a virtual installation. Preceding the opening events, the Mary Elizabeth Dee Shaw Gallery will host an Artist Talk with Dinh at the Kimball Visual Art Center (WSU) on Thursday, November 2^nd at 6pm.