Rodrigo Valenzuela joins UCLA Department of Art faculty 7.1.17
The UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture is pleased to announce the appointment of artist Rodrigo Valenzuela as assistant professor in the Department Art. Valenzuela’s appointment is effective July 1, 2017.
Born in Chile and based in Los Angeles, Valenzuela is a Los Angeles-based artist working in photography, video, painting, and installation. Using autobiographical threads to inform larger universal fields of experience, his work constructs narratives, scenes, and stories that point to the tensions found between the individual and communities. Much of Valenzuela’s work deals with the experience of undocumented immigrants and laborers.
“I look forward to working with Rodrigo,” said Department of Art Professor Catherine Opie who heads the photography area. “As an artist who combines installation and video to form the basis for a multidisciplinary approach to photography, his practice aligns with the mission of our department and the ethos of our students and faculty. He will be a great asset to the institution, and the department enthusiastically welcomes both his youth and the diversity of his practice.”
Valenzuela’s work has been exhibited internationally, including in recent solo exhibitions at Lisa Kandlhofer Galerie, Vienna, AU; the Ulrich Museum of Art, Wichita, KS; the Art Museum of the University of Memphis, TN; Klowden Mann, Los Angeles, CA; the Frye Art Museum, Seattle, WA; and Museo de Arte Contemporaneo, Santiago, Chile.
Prior to joining the Department of Art faculty, Valenzuela held several artist residencies across the US and Canada including a fellowship at the Drawing Center, New York, NY; the Core Fellowship at the Glassell School of Art, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX; and residencies at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, ME and the MacDowell Colony, NE. He earned his M.F.A. in Photomedia at the University of Washington, Seattle, and has a B.A. in philosophy from Evergreen State College, Olympia, WA and a B.F.A. in art history and photography from the University of Chile, Santiago, Chile.
At UCLA, Valenzuela will teach both undergraduate and graduate students in the photography area of the Department of Art, while continuing his own research and artistic practice. “Since I was a young student in Chile, I have admired faculty and alumni from UCLA, and I am thrilled to join this community,” said Valenzuela. “I look forward to sharing my experience and knowledge with young artists, and having the opportunity to learn from my respected colleagues and students and grow as an artist and teacher.”
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