Artifacts from an Unborn Empire brings together twenty-three contemporary artists whose works examine how civilizations are imagined, constructed, documented, and remembered.
Through installation, sculpture, photography, textile, video, archival materials, and mixed-media practices, the exhibition considers the forces that shape collective identity and asks who has the authority to define history, culture, and belonging.
Created specifically for Brand Library & Art Center, the exhibition engages directly with the library as both a repository of knowledge and a living civic space. The project considers the evolving role of cultural institutions in shaping collective memory and facilitating the exchange of ideas. As contemporary methods of storing, organizing, and accessing information continue to transform, Artifacts from an Unborn Empire invites reflection on how histories are preserved, transmitted, and reimagined across generations.
Central to the exhibition is an expansive approach to materiality. Industrial materials such as brick, clay, glass, and metal appear alongside books, journals, documents, photographs, letters, mementos, and other forms of everyday ephemera. Through processes of collecting, archiving, assembling, and transforming, the artists reveal how material culture functions as both evidence and invention, displaying lived experiences while generating new narratives.
Curated by Jason Jenn and Vojislav Radovanović
Featuring: Aprille Elizabeth Curtis, Ben Cuevas, Cheyann Washington, Elana Mann, Ellen Jong, Francis Robateau, Gina Herrera, Greg Day, Hugo Heredia Barrera, Jason Jenn, Jason Trucco, Jotham Hung, Kayla Tange, Kristine Schomaker, Marcus Kuiland-Nazario, Nancy Kay Turner, Reyah, Robert Patrick, Rosalyn Myles, Rubén Esparza, Tony Isaja, and Vojislav Radovanović.
Exhibition Dates: September 26 – December 31, 2026, Brand Library & Art Center is located at 1601 West Mountain Street, Glendale, CA 91201.