The University of Maryland Art Gallery is pleased to present Chip Lord: In Transit, part of its ongoing Video in The Atrium (ViTA) initiative. Begun in fall 2022, this new initiative aims to bring art outside the walls of the gallery and activate an underutilized section of the Parren J. Mitchell Art-Sociology Building’s large atrium and gathering space. The series showcases video art from the Art Gallery’s own collection and presents new video work from national and international contemporary artists, highlighting the medium’s robust history and its latest directions. Expanding the Art Gallery’s existing footprint, ViTA brings art directly to the many students and visitors who pass through this space.

A founding member of the San Francisco-based alternative architecture and art collective Ant Farm (1968-1978), Chip Lord (b. 1944) is considered a leading innovator of the video art genre during the medium’s golden age in the 1970s. Trained as an architect, his work crosses disciplinary boundaries into the realms of multi-media, performance, and public art. Similar to a modern building’s foundations of concrete, steel, and glass, Lord’s work relies on the sturdy interplay of cynicism, despair, and tongue-and-cheek humor to explore and critique issues such as urban geography, planning, and the environment.

In the single-channel video In Transit, Lord invites the viewer to contemplate the ways in which our movements through space and time both reflect and shape our individual and collective identities. Drawing on his background in architecture and his interest in the built environment, the artist challenges us to consider the social and environmental costs of our reliance on cars, planes, and other forms of transportation, while also celebrating the freedom and possibility that travel can offer. Ultimately, In Transit offers a compelling meditation on the ongoing quest for mobility and connection in our fast-paced and ever-changing world.

Chip Lord: In Transit is organized by Director Taras W. Matla. Major support is provided by the Dorothy and Nicholas Orem Exhibition Fund. Generous support is provided by the Maryland State Arts Council. This exhibition is in association with University of Maryland's Arts for All initiative.