WHAT: The “E Pluribus Unum: Mogollon” exhibition at the University Art Museum (UAM) will feature more than 800 portraits collected from residents across New Mexico by artists Matthew Chase-Daniel and Jerry Wellman during a two-month period last fall.
WHO: The University Art Museum at New Mexico State University is partnering with Santa Fe-based Axle Contemporary to present the sixth and final phase of their project, which is focused on communities south of Interstate 40 and west of Interstate 25. The artists captured portraits of residents from Belen, Deming, Lordsburg, Columbus, Truth or Consequences, Hatch, Socorro, Magdalena, Pie Town, Zuni, Pine Hill, Grants, Acoma, Las Cruces and Silver City.
WHEN: Opening reception for “E Pluribus Unum: Mogollon” is from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 5. The exhibition runs from June 5 through August 20, 2025. The UAM is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
WHERE: In the Mullennix Bridge Gallery in the University Art Museum, 1308 E. University Avenue.
VISUALS: The exhibition at the UAM and the accompanying book, captures the concept reflected on the book’s cover, where all the portraits are overlaid in translucent layers, aligned by the eyes of each subject. The exhibition will present this singular image, the full set of more than 800 portraits, photos of the 2024 project in action, and a life-size image of the mobile studio.
Axle Contemporary, a collaborative project by Chase-Daniel and Wellman, has evolved since 2010 to include book publishing, performance art, and other socially engaged projects. To date, it has featured more than 400 New Mexico artists in more than 180 exhibitions.
-30-
CUTLINE: Left: Jerry Wellman and two visitors to the mobile studio/gallery in Hatch, New Mexico in 2024. (Image courtesy of Axle Contemporary) Right: A blend image composed of all portraits in “E Pluribus Unum: Mogollon” by Axle Contemporary. (Image courtesy of Axle Contemporary)
CUTLINE: A blend image composed of all portraits in “E Pluribus Unum: Mogollon” by Axle Contemporary. (Image courtesy of Axle Contemporary)
CUTLINE: Jerry Wellman and two visitors to the mobile studio/gallery in Hatch, New Mexico in 2024. (Image courtesy of Axle Contemporary)
CUTLINE: Artists Matthew Chase-Daniel and Jerry Wellman traveled around south central and southwestern New Mexico in Axle Contemporary, inviting residents to have their portraits taken in the mobile art space and solar-powered photography studio. (Image courtesy of Axle Contemporary)
CUTLINE: Portrait from “E Pluribus Unum: Mogollon,” 2024. (Image courtesy of Axle Contemporary)