Adam Farcus

Through poetic sleight of hand, Farcus’s work investigates the negative emotional ramifications of and positive emotional responses to climate change and social injustice. While their work takes many forms – installations, videos, social practice, drawing, scores, performances, etc. - language and social interaction are common mediums in Farcus’s work. Many of their works have a purposeful ambiguity created through abstraction and juxtaposition which embody the often unsettling and chaotic state of our planet and society. The purpose of Farcus’s work is to ask viewers not to ignore climate change, injustice, or their effects, but to confront their fears and anxieties, acknowledge how we are part of the issues, and find motivation and strength to be part of the solutions.

Adam Farcus is an artist, curator, feminist, organizer, poet, quasi-linguist, teacher, and writer. Farcus received their MFA from the University of Illinois at Chicago, BFA from Illinois State University, and AA from Joliet Junior College. They currently serve on the Foundations in Art, Theory and Education (FATE) board, as well as participate in the Climate Psychology Alliance and organize with the Utopian Megapraxis. Their work has been exhibited at numerous venues, including the Modern Museum of Art Fort Worth; Vox Populi, Philadelphia; the American University Museum; and the Advance Art Museum in Changsha, China. Farcus’s academic writing has been published in the Journal of Second Language Writing and Art Education, and their creative writing has been published in Rattle: A Journal at the Convergence of Art and Writing and Funny Looking Dog Quarterly, among others. Farcus is the director of Lease Agreement, an alternative and nomadic curatorial project.

Publications:

Yasukawa, A., & Farcus, A. (2023). Tunnel, teapot, mermaid, ghost: Creative-critical practice as critical language awareness. Journal of Second Language Writing, 60, 101018. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2023.101018. 

Farcus, A. (2021). Seeing and Reading Color: Resisting Hegemonic Power from Within a Foundations Art Classroom. Art Education, 74:5, 49-54, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00043125.2021.1928472.