EMU McMIllan Gallery from February 3rd - March 15th

In 2019 the McMillan Gallery Team requisition UO Alumn Artist, Mohammed Murshed to create images of UO student artist alumni who had exhibited in our galleries. Mohammed described the process as “I painted portraits of them with their art; in the background of each portrait, I honored their work that was exhibited in one of the EMU’s two galleries: the McMillan Gallery and the Aperture Gallery.  I enjoyed the process of doing this because it was challenging due to researching what their artwork looks like, how they do it, and how they got there. They each have their own inspiring story, and it was an honor to paint them.” Student and alumni artists featured in this exhibit include Mohamed Murshed (self-portrait), Ugo Akabike, Daniela Cardenas-Riumallo, Elexus Greene, Polly Irungu, J.Jackson, Jenny Kroik, Meerah Powell, Grace Kwon, Anne Magratten, Sophie Navarro, Sergio B. Sanchez, Allison Shukis, Mary Vertulfo, and Andrew Young. 

Artist Bio: 

My name is Mohammed Murshed. I am a Yemeni American visual artist currently based in Portland, Oregon. I graduated with an MA from the University of Oregon Art and Technology Department and an MFA in Visual Studies from Pacific Northwest College of Art. My artistic practice spans a wide range of mediums, including painting, textiles, sculpture, video, sound, computer programming, writing, poetry, and video games. The primary focus of my work is to raise awareness about the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, exploring its roots and presenting this narrative through a didactic lens. I incorporate historical and archaeological evidence, such as Carbon Dating, to convey facts using the scientific method. This approach helps to dispel misconceptions and romanticized versions of historical events, which have been passed down through oral traditions, literature, and folklore. Rather than relying solely on ingrained traditions, I aim to share my personal experiences growing up in Yemen and my journey as an immigrant to the United States due to the ongoing war. I consider myself fortunate to have escaped the conflict in time, but many of my family members remain in Yemen, living amid destruction and uncertainty. In my artistic exploration, I challenge myself to experiment with new approaches. Textiles play a significant role in my work, serving as a medium through which I examine cultural and gender inequalities in Yemen. Patterns and colors are central to my artistic process, as they have been integral to human civilization since its inception. By integrating these elements into my work, I strive to convey their cultural significance and create a deeper understanding of the patterns that define our shared history. 

“Rethinking the Masculinization of the Postwar Labor Migrant” – The mid-twentieth century’s unprecedented economic growth led to the emergence of a new category of mobile person: the “temporary” labor migrant, eventually known as the “guest worker.” And by the 1950s, from the Americas to Africa to Europe, this worker had acquired specific characteristics: a solo male, traveling alone, leaving any family members behind as insurance to both societies that he would eventually return. Scholars have reasoned that if the goal of labor-recruiting societies was to ensure migrants’ stay would be only temporary, those societies would naturally aim to leave male migrants’ wives and children somewhere else. 

In this talk, Julie Weise examines archival sources from three continents to show that many who articulated both dominant gender ideologies and capitalist imperatives at mid-century found more reason to include women in temporary labor recruitment than to exclude them. Weise demonstrates contingency and provides alternative explanations for the masculinization of transborder recruitment programs that eventually occurred in the postwar years.

Julie M. Weise is an associate professor of history at the University of Oregon. She is the author of Corazón de Dixie: Mexicanos in the U.S. South since 1910 (UNC Press, 2015), which garnered an Organization of American Historians book award among others. The manuscript for her second book, “Guest Worker: Lives across Borders in an Age of Prosperity,” is under contract with UNC Press. Her research has been supported by Fulbright France, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the School for Advanced Research, the American Philosophical Society, and the Gerda Henkel Foundation among others. Her writing and commentary on immigration politics have appeared in The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Atlantic, National Public Radio, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Conversation, and other outlets.

EMU McMIllan Gallery from February 3rd - March 15th

In 2019 the McMillan Gallery Team requisition UO Alumn Artist, Mohammed Murshed to create images of UO student artist alumni who had exhibited in our galleries. Mohammed described the process as “I painted portraits of them with their art; in the background of each portrait, I honored their work that was exhibited in one of the EMU’s two galleries: the McMillan Gallery and the Aperture Gallery.  I enjoyed the process of doing this because it was challenging due to researching what their artwork looks like, how they do it, and how they got there. They each have their own inspiring story, and it was an honor to paint them.” Student and alumni artists featured in this exhibit include Mohamed Murshed (self-portrait), Ugo Akabike, Daniela Cardenas-Riumallo, Elexus Greene, Polly Irungu, J.Jackson, Jenny Kroik, Meerah Powell, Grace Kwon, Anne Magratten, Sophie Navarro, Sergio B. Sanchez, Allison Shukis, Mary Vertulfo, and Andrew Young. 

Artist Bio: 

My name is Mohammed Murshed. I am a Yemeni American visual artist currently based in Portland, Oregon. I graduated with an MA from the University of Oregon Art and Technology Department and an MFA in Visual Studies from Pacific Northwest College of Art. My artistic practice spans a wide range of mediums, including painting, textiles, sculpture, video, sound, computer programming, writing, poetry, and video games. The primary focus of my work is to raise awareness about the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, exploring its roots and presenting this narrative through a didactic lens. I incorporate historical and archaeological evidence, such as Carbon Dating, to convey facts using the scientific method. This approach helps to dispel misconceptions and romanticized versions of historical events, which have been passed down through oral traditions, literature, and folklore. Rather than relying solely on ingrained traditions, I aim to share my personal experiences growing up in Yemen and my journey as an immigrant to the United States due to the ongoing war. I consider myself fortunate to have escaped the conflict in time, but many of my family members remain in Yemen, living amid destruction and uncertainty. In my artistic exploration, I challenge myself to experiment with new approaches. Textiles play a significant role in my work, serving as a medium through which I examine cultural and gender inequalities in Yemen. Patterns and colors are central to my artistic process, as they have been integral to human civilization since its inception. By integrating these elements into my work, I strive to convey their cultural significance and create a deeper understanding of the patterns that define our shared history. 

Another installment of an ongoing virtual series from Special Collections and University Archives (SCUA) where we spotlight the innovative work of archival research fellows from around the globe. Held monthly, this series offers a unique opportunity to engage with the latest in archival research across various disciplines. Each session will feature a different fellow presenting their findings and exploring how their work sheds new light on history, scholarship and research.

March’s lecture features Shai Feraro, 2024 Tee A. Corinne Memorial Travel Fellow. Dr. Feraro is a Research Fellow at the University of Haifa and teaches at both the Open University of Israel and the Technion. He also serves as the Secretary of the Israeli Association for the Study of Religions. His research focuses on alternative religions and spiritualities in North America and the UK during the 19th and 20th centuries. Dr. Feraro is the author of Women and Gender Issues in British Paganism, 1945–1990 (2020) and has co-edited several works, including Contemporary Alternative Spiritualities in Israel (2016) and Magic and Witchery in the Modern West (2019), all published by Palgrave Macmillan.

Swing by the Lease Crutcher Lewis room in the EMU to get free, confidential rapid testing for HIV, HEP C, and Syphilis with just a finger poke🩸They also provide safer sex supplies, a needle exchange and HRT injection supplies💉, Narcan education and distribution, and other harm reduction supplies!

Open to UO students, faculty and staff!