Oceano (for seven generations) and the mythology of photography of the West
with Lana Z Caplan
Evolution, Gavin’s Cabin, Oceano, from Oceano (for seven generations), ©Lana Z Caplan 2023
Saturday, April 27 at 10:30am
Lana Z Caplan spent seven-years researching and collaborating with the community of Oceano, California and yak tityu tityu yak tiłhini Northern Chumash Tribal leadership, to produce a conceptual collection of histories from the Oceano Dunes. These are the dunes of Weston’s modernist photographs; of Cecil B. DeMille’s recently excavated and restored sphinxes from his 1923 Ten Commandments movie set, buried in the sand after filming; of the nearly lost Northern Chumash tribe; and of the Dunites - the artists, poets, nudists, and mystics squatting in dune shacks in the 1920’s-40’s - who hosted Weston during his shooting trips; and of the 1.5 million ATV riders who visit each year.
Oceano offers both an interrogation of photographic conventions regarding landscape and representation, a feminist response to the standard masculine landscape, and confronts historic approaches to portraiture by enlisting the past and present inhabitants in performative and co-constructed moments.
Registration is required to reserve your spot and receive event reminders.
About Lana Z Caplan
Lana Z Caplan is a photographer and filmmaker often inspired by the intersection of history and contemporary issues. Her most recent project contrasts the subsequent inhabitants of California’s Oceano Dunes - Indigenous Chumash and depression-era artist and mystic squatters with the current ATV riding community that is creating a public health crisis.
Her work has been featured in publications such as ARTnews, LA Times, Hyperallergic.com, Lenscratch.com and The Boston Globe, exhibited in museums such as Museum of Contemporary Art Tucson, Institute of Contemporary Art San Diego, Everson Museum of Art, Inside Out Art Museum Beijing, Museo Tamayo Arte Contemporáneo Mexico City, National Gallery of Art Puerto Rico, Griffin Museum of Photography, and screened in numerous festivals around the world. She earned her BA and BS from Boston University, MFA in Photography from Massachusetts College of Art and is currently an Assistant Professor of Photography and Video at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.
Caplan published the monograph Oceano (for seven generations) in 2023 with Kehrer Verlag, which will be available at a book signing after the talk.
Location and Event Info
This event takes place at the Marriott Courtyard Old Town, located at 2435 Jefferson St, San Diego, CA 92110
Street parking is available in the surrounding area. A dedicated parking lot will be available to festival participants on April 27 from 9:00am to 10:00pm. Ride sharing and cycling are encouraged.
Public transit options to the festival include the Blue and Green Trolley lines, Amtrak Pacific Surfliner, and MTS Bus lines 10, 30, and 44.
Access to the artist talk is included with Festival, VIP, and One Day Passes. Artist talks are included with Medium Review and Big Pass registration. Donation based drop-in attendance is available 30 minutes before the lecture start time.