Nepantla: Maps for Uncharted Futures Opening In the CVA

The Center for the Visual Arts Gallery (CVA) at Brookdale Community College, with support from the Foundation’s Visiting Artist Program, presents Nepantla: Maps for Uncharted Futures, a solo exhibition by Uruguayan-American artist Ana Vizcarra Rankin, MFA. Running from October 12th through December 12th, 2024, the exhibition delves into the subjective narratives that maps convey, highlighting how they go beyond mere geographical facts to tell deeper stories about place and identity. Featuring Rankin’s large-scale world maps, inspired by Joaquín Torres García, and her Star Maps series, which depict the night sky at specific locations and times, these works challenge traditional map narratives and invite new ways of considering the world by reorienting the viewer’s sense of place.

The exhibition opens with a reception on Saturday, October 12th, from 3:00 to 5:00 pm, and concludes with a closing reception and artist talk on Thursday, December 12th, from 4:30 to 6:30 pm. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Friday, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, or by appointment.

The exhibition’s title draws from Gloria Anzaldúa’s Borderlands: La Frontera, where the Nahuatl word nepantla represents the “in-between state” that speaks to both pain and possibility. This concept reflects the collaborative vision shared by Rankin and curator Elisa Elorza, inspired by their own bicultural experiences as Uruguayan-American and Mexican-American, respectively. The show includes the first-ever exhibition of Rankin’s self portrait, Ofrenda a Yemaya (2012, oil on canvas, 24”x36”).

Rankin’s work, which centers on mapping, data visualization, and our place in the universe, has been widely exhibited and is featured in prestigious collections including the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Museum, the Brandywine River Museum of Art, and the Uruguay Cultural Foundation for the Arts. She has received numerous accolades, including support from Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and Creative Capital x Skoll.

Rankin has participated in artist residencies in Ecuador, Italy, and Mexico and is the founder of BrobDinGnag International, a curatorial exchange program that focuses on diversity and inclusion. She holds an MFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and teaches at the University of North Carolina in Wilmington.

The CVA Gallery is located at Brookdale Community College, 765 Newman Springs Road, Lincroft, NJ. Visitors can park conveniently in lot #2. The CVA Gallery is committed to providing free, accessible art and design experiences to the community and is open to all. For more information, visit the CVA Gallery website or contact curator Elisa Elorza at eelorza@brookdalecc.edu. Learn more about the artist at www.avrankin.com.