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Kim Abeles

Kim Victoria Abeles

Kim Victoria Abeles is an American artist and activist. She was born on August 8, 1952 in Richmond Heights, Missouri. Since 1978, she has lived and worked in Downtown Los Angeles. Most of her works center around the environment or social justice issues. From feminism to science literacy, her art brings awareness to political and social issues. She is known for making images out of smog in her exhibition titled The Smog Collector. A central component of her works is experimentation and the use of unusual materials. Her exhibition list includes Valises for Campground, a series dedicated to fire prevention and natural forest preservation, Video Walls, an installation based on the effects of local air pollution, and Pearls of Wisdom: End the Violence, dedicated to survivors of domestic abuse. Her works have been debuted in over twenty-two different countries. Outside of her art, Abeles was a professor from 1998 to 2009 who taught sculpting, drawing, and public art at California State University of Northridge.

Early Life

Abeles was born in 1952 to parents Burton Noel Wright and Frances Elizabeth Sander in Missouri but spent time in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her time in Pittsburgh inspired some of her works. She earned her BFA in painting from Ohio State University in 1974. In 1980, Abeles earned her MFA in studio art from the University of California, Irvine. She being her career as a free-lance artist in 1975. She started lecturing in 1980. Her lecturing contributed to her becoming a professor later in life.

Works

Exhibits/Collections

• Walk a Mile in My Shoes: This 2014 piece was commissioned by the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs and the Bureau of Engineering. It used traffic medians and repurposed them at the corners of Martin Luther King Jr Blvd/Rodeo Rd and at JeffersonBlvd/Rodeo Rd.
• On-site Smog Collector Sculptures: These sculptures were created between1991-1992. They were commissioned by the California Bureau of Automotive Repair, and the Department of Consumer Affairs. The sculptures were used as a way to encourage smog checks and the use of ride share. The exhibit was a touring exhibit.
• Valises for Camp Ground: Arts, Corrections and Fire Management: Created in 2017, this exhibition was funded through the National Endowment for the Arts, LA County Arts Commission, and was administered by the Armory Center for the Arts. The exhibition was facilitated by the National Park Service, Department of Corrections, and the County Fire department, The exhibition was created to teach about fire prevention.
• Shared Skies: Created in 2014, the exhibitor was a series of digital prints and sculpture that examined environmental decision making and finding community. The exhibition was administered by the Community Redevelopment Agency Anderson Munger Family YMCA.
• Time-Line-Space: Commissioned in 2010 by the Los Angeles Unified School District, this exhibition was shown at the library entrance of the Robert F Kennedy Community Schools.
• Waiting/Watching: Commissioned by the EcoArts Connections in Boulder, Colorado, this 2012 exhibit featured dozens of animated videos featuring the eyes of local children and the traffic in their neighborhoods. The exhibit focused on air pollution and the environmental impacts traffic has on neighborhoods.

Activity Books

Abeles has created different activity books for children and families about different environmental and systemic issues. Her Environmental Activity Book contained art and science projects that discussed water, air pollution, consumption, and recycling. Here I Am- Aquí Estoy was an activity book created for the families at T.H.E. Clinic in Los Angeles. The activity book centered around nutritional education.

Awards and Fellowships

Kim Abeles received the 2013 Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship. She is also the recipient of awards from the J. Paul Getty Trust Fund for the Visual Arts, the Andy Warhol Foundation, the California Community Foundation, and the California Arts Council. She was selected to receive the Distinguished Woman Artist Award from the Council of 100.