The Medium Is the Message is a group exhibition exploring how meaning in visual art emerges through the relationship between material and content. Curated by Material Projects DTLA, the exhibition brings together San Diego– and Los Angeles–based artists whose practices foreground material as an active communicator rather than a neutral vessel.
Working across clay, adobe, encaustic, pigment, industrial materials, and organic matter, the artists examine how weight, fragility, accumulation, erosion, and touch shape perception and interpretation. Some works align medium and message to reinforce meaning, while others introduce tension between what is depicted and how it is made— inviting viewers to consider not just what a work is “about,” but how artistic choices construct meaning.
The exhibition features work by Annie Claflin, Beliz Iristay, Bridget Rountree, David Fobes, Elijah Rubottom, Helena Westra, Jaya Darriet, Joe Riley, and Meghan Augustine.
Exhibition Details
Title: The Medium is the Message
Curators: Material Project DTLA (Andie Ryan Round and John Dewey)
Exhibit Dates: March 5 - April 2, 2026
Gallery Hours: Fridays 1-7 p.m.; Saturdays 12-6 p.m.; or by appointment
Opening Reception: March 5 | 5-8 p.m.
Artist Panel Discussion: March 18 | 5:30-7:30 p.m.
Free Workshops: Poetry Workshop-March 15; Printmaking Workshop-March 21; Community Knitting Circle-March 28
Location: Art Produce Gallery, 3139 University Ave., San Diego
Presented by: Space 4 Art in partnership with Art Produce
Supported by: The Prebys Foundation Arts Ecosystem Grant
For press inquiries, interviews, or additional information, please contact Katie Ruiz: katie@sdspace4art.org.
This Space 4 Art-produced exhibition is the second of seven as part of our year-long residency at Art Produce, funded by a generous grant from the Prebys Foundation.
The year-long programming partnership between Space 4 Art and Art Produce aims to expand support for local artists, deepen community engagement, and strengthen the city’s creative ecosystem through exhibitions, workshops, artist talks, and cross-organizational collaboration.
The Prebys grant aims to help solve structural problems such as the lack of affordable arts spaces in which community-based groups like Space 4 Art can produce accessible arts programming.
The Space 4 Art @ initiative provides a synergistic means for activation at Art Produce, which remains fiercely committed to building on decades of creative experimentation and community-building in North Park.