“Atomic Dragons” Exhibition Explores Legacy of the Nuclear Age

The first use of atomic bombs in war—at Hiroshima and Nagasaki—unleashed an intense thermal flash that incinerated everything combustible within one to two miles of the blast sites. Mushroom clouds rose high into the atmosphere, visible from more than 100 miles away.

Yet the legacy of those detonations—along with decades of nuclear weapons testing—extends far beyond these immediate catastrophic effects. That enduring impact is the focus of Atomic Dragons, a group exhibition by the intergenerational artist collective SWANS (Slow War Against the Nuclear State) presented by Pitzer College Art Galleries this spring.

Running from February 7 through April 4, the exhibition examines the ongoing consequences of the nuclear age, tracing connections between its origins and present-day issues including nuclear waste, environmental contamination, and the global proliferation of nuclear weapons and nuclear power plants.

“Atomic Dragons feels urgent in our current political climate, especially as authoritarian impulses become more visible,” explained Emily Butts, who serves as director of curatorial affairs and Pitzer College Art Galleries. “The exhibition brings a longer historical lens to the present, tracing how the nuclear age still structures daily life from waste and contamination to militarized power.”

Presented in the College’s Nichols and Lenzner Galleries, Atomic Dragons features work by Fiona Amundsen, Nancy Buchanan, Judith Dancoff, Hillary Mushkin, Sheila Pinkel, elin o’Hara slavick, and Lucy HG Solomon of Cesar & Lois, her collaboration with Cesar Baio.

The exhibition makes clear that nuclear imperialism is inseparable from colonial histories—from uranium mining on Indigenous lands to weapons testing in colonized and occupied territories. Drawing on family archives connected to renowned physicists, the Manhattan Project, and long histories of activism, several artists reflect on how the nuclear age has shaped their own lives and trajectories.

By tracing the nuclear lifecycle—from extraction and testing to production and waste—Atomic Dragons foregrounds the enduring human and environmental costs of living with its legacy. In conjunction with the exhibition, a public symposium featuring several of the artists will be held on April 4.

“Hearing from the artists will deepen what visitors see in the galleries,” Butts said. “Expert perspectives help connect the exhibition to the stakes today. We’re thrilled to welcome Jim Walsh (MIT) and David B. Richardson, PhD (UC Irvine), who will speak on contemporary nuclear risk and its health and environmental consequences as part of the symposium program alongside exhibiting artists.”

Exhibition Dates: February 7 – April 4, 2026

Location: Nichols and Lenzner Galleries

Gallery Hours: Wednesday through Saturday, 1:00PM to 4:00PM

Admission: Free and open to the public

For more information about the exhibition

To schedule class visits or group tours, please contact Emily Butts, emily_butts@pitzer.edu