Designed by Lucia Garces

Forms of Care: The Art of Representing the Body

Co-Curated by: Zoe Cinel & LaVanda Mireles

Featured artists: Leslie Barlow, Marra Evans, Sarah Faris, Jessalyn Finch, Ni-Ka Ford, Life Drawing for the End of the World, Lucia Garces, May Ling Kopecky, Marianne Petit, Steven Premo, Jenny Schmid, Christopher Selleck, Dan Thompson, Megan Vossler, Jess Kiel-Wornson

Exhibition on view: Saturday, May 16, 2026 - Sunday, January 31, 2027

Reception: Saturday, August 22, 2026, 1:00 - 3:00 PM | Free

Figurative drawing workshop led by Megan Vossler (in the Gallery): Sunday, June 28, 2026, 10 AM - 12 PM

“Did you ever ask yourself, of all the parts that make that man, which one holds the souls?”

In the 2025 Frankenstein movie directed by Guillermo del Toro, a concerned William asks this existential question to his brother, Doctor Victor Frankenstein. William’s question refers to the “Creature,” a resurrected being his brother brought back to life by patching together limbs and body parts of soldiers, criminals and other “unknown” individuals. 

In the movie, Dr. Frankenstein evades William's question, but this recent take on Mary Shelley’s famous novel still highlights some of the contradictions embedded in the history of medicine and medical illustration. It nods at the power structures that have always existed within the relationships between doctor and patients, surgeon and artists, artists and subject,  bringing up questions like: who did the bodies that are immortalized into famous medical atlases still used today in medical education belong to? How did they end up being subjects of representation? Through consensual offering or extraction? Does the noble goal of curing justify the means through which medical progress occurs? If everybody - and body part - has a soul, can representation be done with care? 

This exhibition grapples with this timely debate around the ethics of representation within the artistic fields that pride themselves on depicting the human body closely and with attention: medical illustration, figurative drawing, and portraiture, and how these fields have struggled to be inclusive and ethically center diverse perspectives. By bringing together fifteen artists that work regionally, nationally and internationally in these fields, Forms of Care: The Art of Representing the Body, proposes contemporary pathways for “careful” representation. Working in a variety of 2D and 3D media - etchings, charcoal, photography, oil painting, digital illustration, 3D sculpting and pop-up books to mention a few -  these artists create work that is deeply in conversation and in celebration of the bodies that they portray: either their own or the bodies of beloved relatives and community members. 

The exhibition is implemented by programs, interactive artworks and participatory educational activities present in the gallery to directly engage visitors’ bodies. At the center of the gallery is an accessible space designated for figurative drawing, that encourages visitors to literally step into the model’s shoes and experience what it feels like to be in the spotlight. Throughout the run of the exhibition, the space will be activated by workshops and other asynchronous learning opportunities. 

About the Curators

Zoe Cinel is the Curator at the Rochester Art Center, an interdisciplinary artist and immigrant living and working on Dakota and Ojibwe Mni Sota Makoce land. Through art and organizing, they strive to produce social change. 

LaVanda Mireles is Co-Curator of Forms of Care and assists the Curatorial and Programs teams at the Rochester Art Center. She is a Visual Artist whose work explores interconnectedness and themes surrounding the human condition.

Artist Talk with Ni-Ka Ford & Leslie Barlow

Tuesday, October 27, 2026, 6–7 PM | Zoom | Free

Join artists Ni-Ka Ford and Leslie Barlow for a conversation about art, identity, health, and the power of storytelling.

Ni-Ka Ford, a board-certified medical illustrator, combines scientific research with artistic practice to create accurate, inclusive visualizations of the human body. Her work explores the effects of chronic stress on Black maternal health, examining how the body carries and responds to stress while highlighting nourishment, rest and holistic care as pathways toward healing.

Leslie Barlow is a Minneapolis-based visual artist and educator whose life-sized paintings explore race, family, love, friendship, and identity. Through her Within, Between, and Beyond series, Barlow centers the experiences of mixed-race individuals, transracial and transnational adoptees, and interracial families, inviting viewers to reconsider assumptions about race and representation.

Together, Ford and Barlow will discuss how art can make complex experiences visible, create space for underrepresented stories, and encourage greater empathy and understanding. You can view their artwork currently on view as part of the group exhibition Forms of Care: The Art of Representing the Body at Rochester Art Center through January 31, 2027. This exhibition is curated by Zoe Cinel and LaVanda Mireles.

This program will take place virtually on Zoom. Registration is required.

Hello,

You are invited to a Zoom meeting. 

When: Oct 27, 2026 06:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada) 

Register in advance for this meeting:

https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/WUJfjn6TSxSRdv5OkDEcYg 

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

Additional support is provided by the

Mayo Clinic Dolores Jean Lavins Center for Humanities in Medicine.