SMoCA Presents Arizona Premiere of Film by Trio of Native American Artists

Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art (SMoCA) will present the Arizona premiere of Through the Repellent Fence: A Land Art Film about the Southwest-based interdisciplinary arts collective Postcommodity. The film, directed by Sam Wainwright Douglas, follows the group, comprised of three Native American artists – Raven Chacon, Cristóbal Martínez and Kade L. Twist – as they conceive Repellent Fence, a two-mile-long installation that straddled the border between Douglas, Ariz., and Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico.

Postcommodity’s goal in making the film was to give voice to the shared history and enduring cultures of indigenous societies that called the region home long before a border divided them. With support from communities on both sides of the border, the artists installed 28 large-scale inflatable spheres emblazoned with an insignia known as the “open eye” that has existed in indigenous cultures from South America to Canada for thousands of years. Through the Repellent Fence provides an intimate glimpse into the arduous process behind creating this ambitious artwork and how land art can bring communities together.

Founded in 2007, Postcommodity has exhibited nationally and internationally, and is currently showcased in the 2017 Whitney Biennial in New York. The collective was featured in a 2015 SMoCA exhibition as part of the Museum’s ongoing southwestNET series.

Sam Wainwright Douglas, ‘Through the Repellent Fence: A Land Art’ director

Douglas is a director and editor working in Austin, Texas. He recently directed and edited Honky Tonk Heaven, which premiered and won an audience award at South by Southwest 2016. Sam edited and co-produced No No: A Dockumentary, which premiered at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, screened theatrically in 35 cities and was broadcast on Showtime. He also edited and produced the PBS documentary Ladonna Harris: Indian 101, for which Johnny Depp was the executive producer. The show was broadcast on PBS in 2014. Indian 101 was selected for the U.S. State Department’s American Film Showcase and will be shown in developing countries worldwide through screenings organized by embassies.

‘Through the Repellent Fence: A Land Art’ had its world premiere this past February at The Museum of Modern Art in New York City, and has received critical acclaim at notable film festivals.

After the film, director Douglas, along with Martinez and Twist, will invite the audience into a discussion about their adventure and how land art can generate community interaction and perceptual shifts in how we interpret, engage and draw inspiration from our natural world.

‘Through the Repellent Fence: A Land Art’ – Film premiere

Sat., April 22, 5 p.m.

Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art (SMoCA) , 7374 E. Second St., Scottsdale

For more information/tickets, visit SMoCA.org.