Marcus Zúñiga (b. 1990, Silver City, New Mexico) is an artist working in sculpture and time-based media. His work is interested in cultural sensibilities of the universe that contribute to the development of a new cosmology, which posits subjectivity in all matter is essential to the ontology of the cosmos. Consciousness building, multidimensional perception, and land activation are reoccurring themes of Zúñiga;s work. Among the strategies used to confront these themes is the process of locating place within the cosmos, and by extension contemplating local and cosmic scales of place simultaneously. The works often interact with their environment to embody the space between human and cosmic bodies. As consequence, they deconstruct the apparatus of the modern telescope, offering a direct encounter of the primary material of the cosmos - light.
Zúñiga received his BFA from the University of New Mexico and MFA from Art Center College of Design. His work has been featured in curated exhibitions at Philosophical Research Society, Los Angeles; Benito Greene Arte Público, Ciudad Juárez, Mexico; 516 Arts, Albuquerque; and the MexiCali Biennial at the Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art and Culture of the Riverside Art Museum. In 2024, Zúñiga will participate in major exhibitions at Armory Center for the Arts, Pasadena, and Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College, Claremont, for the Getty’s Pacific Standard Time Initiative. Zúñiga is based in Los Angeles.
Publications / links:
Marcus Zúñiga Artist Talk. 516 Arts. 2022.
“Pasadena Artcenter Graduate creates tribute installation to honor great-great-grandmother using mirrors and light.” Pasadena Now. 2022.
“al norte.” La Sección Amarilla de la Migración. Azul Arena. 2022.
“aztlán del sol.” Chamisa. UNM Southwest Hispanic Research Institute. 2021.
“Locating the Cosmic Spirit through Emplacement”, Philosophical Research Society. 23 Oct 2020.
“Relearning the Cosmos through a Multicultural Consciousness”, LASER Talk, Leonardo / ISAST. 25 Sept 2020.
Artist book: gila emplacement. Texts by Alicia Inez Guzmán, Zachary Korol-Gold, Marcus Zúñiga. 2020.
“A New Way to See the Night Sky.” KUNM/NPR. 2 Jun 2017.
“Critical Reflection: Marcus Zúñiga: Ya Veo.” Southwest Contemporary. 1 Jun 2017.
“Jupiter Rising: New Media Artist Marcus Zúñiga.” Pasatiempo. Santa Fe New Mexican. 14 Apr 2017.
Visual Art Source. 2017.
Contact: marcuszuniga.studio@gmail.com
Instagram: @marcuszunigaofficial