Pau S. Pescador: Working

Pau S. Pescador: Working explores the stories of trans individuals employed in the civil service sector at a time when legal protections have become contested ground. Pescador addresses these conditions in a video comprising interviews with US government trans employees and cultural historians to understand the challenges that this bureaucratic environment presents for a trans, non-binary, gender queer individual. In a series of photographic collage works, the artist’s body interacts with everyday objects in spaces where they worked during the early stages of their transition. Despite the legal protections for gender expression as well as the support from some colleagues, Pescador and other trans non-binary individuals are subject to constant microaggressions as they navigate the complexity and conservative nature of government bureaucracy.  

In keeping with the shifting nature and challenges of their working environment, the exhibition is in constant flux. Each week, Pescador will add footage to the video component and research ephemera to the installation. Echoing their artistic methodology, this project-based approach addresses the labor and procedures of bureaucracy while providing an insight into the artist’s subjectivity.
 

About the Artist

Pau S. Pescador (b. 1983) is a contemporary trans-nonbinary artist who works in film, photography, and performance. They graduated with an MFA from University of California, Irvine and a BA from University of Southern California. Select exhibitions and screenings include UV Estudios, Buenos Aires; Biquini Wax, Mexico City; LADRÓNgalería, Mexico City; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles; Main Museum, Los Angeles; The Pit, Glendale; 18th Street Art Center, Santa Monica; 5 Car Garage, Santa Monica; gallery1993, Los Angeles; Coastal/Borders, Getty Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA at Angels Gate Cultural Center; LAND at The Gamble House, Pasadena; Marathon Screenings, Los Angeles; Vacancy, Los Angeles; Ashes/Ashes, Los Angeles; Park View, Los Angeles; and Human Resources, Los Angeles. Select performances include Machine Projects, Los Angeles; Los Angeles Contemporary Archives; Performa 2015; Colony, New York; UC Berkeley: Durham Studio Theater; PAM, Los Angeles; Hammer Museum, with KCHUNG TV, Los Angeles; REDCAT, Los Angeles; Guggenheim Gallery at Chapman University, Los Angeles; and ForYourArt, Los Angeles. Their first collection of writing, CRUSHES: A NOVELLA, was published by Econo Textual Objects in Spring 2017.
 

Curator

Pau S. Pescador: Working is curated by Ciara Ennis, Director and Curator of Pitzer College Art Galleries. Ennis received a PhD in Cultural Studies and Museum Studies from Claremont Graduate University and an MA in Visual Arts Administration, Curating, and Commissioning Contemporary Art from the Royal College of Art, London.
 

In the News

Pau Pescador Celebrates Safe Havens, by Elaine Velie, in Hyperallergic
 

Related Events

Pau S. Pescador: Working (performance)
Tuesday, February 1, 2022, 3 pm
Lenzner Family Art Gallery
 

Image Caption

Installation view of Pau S. Pescador: Working at Pitzer College Art Galleries, January 29-April 12, 2022. Photograph courtesy of Ramak Fazel.