[GUITAR INSTRUMENTAL] [LAUREN]: Hello and welcome to State of the ArtZ, a series dedicated to highlighting different art and cultural events happening right here in Tucson and Southern Arizona.

I'm your host, Lauren Roth, and we're joining you from the University of Arizona Museum of Art, where we're here to learn more about the current exhibition, Pulse, featuring Winslow-based artist, Marlowe Katoney.

Katoney's work blends contemporary images and traditional Navajo iconography using color theory, perspective, and composition to tell stories in both his paintings and weavings.

Katoney's father encouraged him to draw as a kid and to develop as an artist.

He started as a painter here at the University of Arizona, was taught weaving by his grandmother, and he immediately began challenging himself to incorporate movement and bright colors into his early pieces.

I'm joined now by museum curator and director Olivia Miller to learn more about this beautiful exhibit.

Olivia, thanks for talking with me today.

[OLIVIA]: Thanks so much for being here.

[LAUREN]: So can you tell us a little bit about what makes Marlowe Katoney's work unique and what you're showing off in this exhibit?

[OLIVIA]: Absolutely.

So this is an exhibition of Marlowe's paintings and weavings, and I think the thing that makes him really unique as a weaver is that he really approaches his weaving using a very significant background in painting.

So it's really important for us and for the artist to have this exhibition here at the University of Arizona Museum of Art because this was the school where he studied painting.

And he actually trained as a painter before he learned how to weave.

And so when you look at his weavings, you can really see that background.

But he did come from a family of weavers, and so generations on both of his parents' side, there were weavers.

[LAUREN]: So what can museum attendees expect from viewing his works?

[OLIVIA]: Yeah, well I think there's a little something for everybody here.

The really interesting thing about his weavings is that he incorporates a lot of traditional Navajo patterns.

So anyone who has an interest in Navajo weaving, you'll see a lot of similar things.

He puts a contemporary twist on it.

And so they're really fun.

He has a whole series dedicated to breakdancing.

You'll see the influence of video games in his art.

There's a lot of symbolism in his work, and I think he has a really nice balance of using symbols that are really deep and profound and have a lot of meaning, while at the same time also relishing the kind of simple moments in life.

[LAUREN]: In that vein, I'm curious if you can share with us a little bit about this weaving over here that features a breakdancer.

[OLIVIA]: Sure, yes.

That's actually one of his most recent works.

It's also the largest weaving he's done.

So this is part of the Axis Radius series, which is dedicated to breakdancing.

So that is a culture that really fascinated Marlowe, particularly when he was living here in Tucson.

The figure you can see his hand is coming out of a basket.

And so he's doing a spin on the traditional Navajo tree of life image, where typically you have a wedding basket and a corn stock with birds and plants coming out of it.

And it's a symbol of prosperity and a symbol of connecting the earthly and the human and the celestial realms.

[LAUREN]: Can you share a little bit about how Marlowe Katoney's personal history and background influences his work and what's on display?

[OLIVIA]: Sure, absolutely.

Marlowe is Navajo, so he comes from Navajo culture.

He grew up in Winslow, and he still lives in Winslow.

He got a lot of his inspiration from his parents.

His father was artistic, and Marlowe describes how often his father would begin a drawing in the morning, and then he would go to work at the railroads, and he would want Marlowe to complete the drawing by the time he came home.

For him, when we were developing this exhibition, I co-curated it with Dr. Anya Montiel, who is a curator of Native American art.

He said he really wanted the show to demonstrate that Navajo weaving is a contemporary art and a contemporary practice.

He really wants it to be recognized as the fine art that it is.

The word "pulse" refers to this idea that it is a contemporary practice.

It's ongoing.

It's a living, breathing, evolving practice.

At the same time, it refers to the physical act, the constant motion that it takes to weave, and even the acoustics of weaving, the idea of the beating of the comb to tamp down the wool.

[LAUREN]: The University of Arizona Museum of Art is an absolute gem.

I love coming here, and I'm curious about how you get people through the doors and what your broader mission is to be able to expand what you do to our wider audience.

[OLIVIA]: Yeah, that's a great question.

I personally love University Art Museums because I think we have a really unique mission.

We're here to support the faculty and students in their learning, and there's really no better way than a sort of hands-on, physical experience being able to come to a museum and see the way that art connects, not only to research happening on campus, but the way it really connects to our daily lives.

We're really fortunate to have a really wonderful, permanent collection of about 7,000 works of art.

We also have a growing collection of artist archives, and then we also are really fortunate to work with artists like Marlowe Katoney.

We show a lot of contemporary artists, so we're constantly rotating exhibitions.

There truly is something for everybody here.

We want all students to feel like they have a place here at the museum and that they can make a connection with art.

So for this exhibition, as just one example, we worked with a Navajo language learning course.

So Dr. Aresta Tsosie-Paddock teaches Navajo language, and her students were able to see the artwork ahead of time.

They paired up, they selected an artwork, and then they worked together to translate the labels into Navajo, which was a great learning experience for them, and obviously really great for us to be able to have those translations here.

[LAUREN]: You can see Marlowe Katoney's exhibition "Pulse" right here at the University of Arizona Museum of Art, from now until March 23rd.

Thanks so much for joining us on State of the ArtZ.

I'm Lauren Roth, and we look forward to seeing you again soon.

Adios!