Frequently developed as expansive, multi-media projects, Los Angeles artist Sandow Birk's works deal with contemporary life. With an emphasis on social issues, his work often includes themes of inner city violence, graffiti, political issues, travel, war, and prisons, as well as surfing and skateboarding. He has been the recipient of numerous grants and awards including, an NEA International Travel Grant to Mexico City, a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Fulbright Fellowship, a Getty Fellowship, and a City of Los Angeles (COLA) Fellowship. He has been an artist in residence at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC, and at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris.
Birk will discuss his latest epic project: the creation of a hand-transcribed and illuminated manuscript of the Holy Qur'an, in English. This nine-year project seeks to make the message of the Qur'an, unknown to most Americans, less exotic and ominous and more accessible by contrasting the text with scenes of every day life in contemporary United States.