Upcoming Exhibition: ARx Live at the SMUD Museum of Science and Curiosity (MOSAC)
ARx (Artist + Researcher Exhibition) Sacramento is a cross-disciplinary program that pairs local artists with scientific researchers from UC Davis and regional institutions to translate complex science into engaging public art. Modeled after a similar initiative at the Phoenix Bioscience Core, Aggie Square and Wexford Science & Technology present the inaugural Sacramento program, with support from the City of Sacramento Office of Arts & Culture.
Participating teams include:
Geoanna Bautista, assistant professor, UC Davis School of Medicine, and Jennifer Lugris, Uruguayan Korean American painter based in Sacramento.
Leigh Ann Simmons, professor of nursing at the UC Davis Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing, and Jessica Wimbley, multi-media artist/curator based in Sacramento.
Jennifer Rosenthal, associate professor of pediatrics at UC Davis School of Medicine, and Jodi Connelly, multi-media artist whose work focuses on the relationship between people and the natural environment.
Drew Cingel, associate professor, Department of Communication, UC Davis, and Melissa Uroff, artist and photographer based in California.
Angie Louie, professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering, UC Davis, and Muzi Li Rowe, interdisciplinary artist working in photography, sculpture, installation and drawing.
Nicole Kravitz-Wirtz, associate professor, Centers for Violence Prevention, UC Davis, and Ruby Chacón, Sacramento-based artist and high school educator whose works focuses on the lives and resilience of Chicanx/Latinx communities.
Dave Hogsett, industrial biologist and managing director of R&D California at Novonesis, and Sunroop Kaur, interdisciplinary artist based in the Bay Area.
Gabriel Simmons, AI researcher whose applied work spans food, life sciences, and cultural heritage, and Taner Ilhan Pasamehmetoglu, multidisciplinary visual artist whose work explores storytelling, sustainability and cultural hybridity.
Elizabeth Lopez, wildlife biologist with Sequoia Ecological Consulting, and Yared Portillo, community-based artist, educator, and organizer from Santa María, California.
I am excited to debut the video installation "Weaving the Story: Welcome Baby" , 2026.
Welcome Baby: Road to Resilience is a community-based postpartum home-visiting program that supports families in Yolo County through nurse-led health assessments, breastfeeding guidance, health education, connections to community resources, and specialized follow-up care as needed.
Drawing on Dr. Leigh Ann Simmons’ research and program evaluation, including patient and practitioner quotes and annual report data, the artist uses fabric patterns and colors to distinguish among different perspectives. Hospital gowns represent patients’ voices, medical blue represents practitioners, and the pink-and-blue patterned newborn hats represent the program. Together, these elements form a multichannel video installation that explores maternal and newborn care, health concerns such as hypertension and preeclampsia, and the importance of advocacy. Arranged like quilt sections, the videos use fabric and weaving as visual metaphors for interconnected experiences of care.
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