MILWAUKEE, WIS.- The Haggerty Museum of Art at Marquette University presents three new, and one evolving exhibition that opened on January 22, and run through May 31, 2015.

Mila Teshaieva: Promising Waters
For over four years, photographer Mila Teshaieva has documented the transformation of the three former Soviet republics on the shores of the Caspian Sea: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. The battle for control of the region’s vast oil and gas reserves and the search for a national identity have led to far-reaching changes for the society and environment. Teshaieva’s images reveal an atmosphere of insecurity, where people pin their hopes and expectations on a transformation whose direction remains uncertain. The project takes the viewer on a subtle and complex journey through the promises of a new oil region, raising questions as to the relationship between the state and private identity, the ties between past, present and future, and how to pinpoint the boundary between rise or fall.

States of Uncertainty
This exhibition explores the concept of border as social and spatial construct and examines the complexities of establishing personal identity in areas of geopolitical instability. What social and cultural impact is felt when states are formed and disbanded, official languages sanctioned or forbidden, borders drawn then erased? When national boundaries shift, must personal identity also shift? To what extent does a political territory influence the formation of the self? Through sculpture, video and sound-based installations, artists Yael Bartana, Aleksandra Domanović, and Shilpa Gupta question nationhood, citizenship and identity as defined (or not) by geography.

The Body, The Self
To kick off its year-long, 30th anniversary celebration, the Haggerty Museum of Art presents the exhibition The Body, The Self. Drawn from the permanent collection, this exhibition considers the human body as site for intersecting identities. Often understood as a conduit for self-expression, the body can reveal or deliberately confuse identity markers such as gender, race, and sexuality. Individuals can assert control over their bodies or become objects of unsolicited designations. The photographs, prints, sculptures, and paintings in this exhibition employ representations of the body or use the body as medium to explore subjects and subjectivities.

Clear Picture: Looking at Communities from an Art Museum
During the Fall semester of the 2014-15 academic year, Marquette University journalism and Spanish students are working together to modify and curate an exhibition in the Haggerty Museum of Art at Marquette University. A groundbreaking, multi-disciplinary, and award-winning educational project, Clear Picture brings four courses of students together over the course of one academic year to explore connections between art and community. The Haggerty Museum becomes a multi-disciplinary textbook and laboratory.

Over the summer, the Clear Picture faculty team selected works from the Haggerty permanent collection to create the first version of the exhibition this fall. This fall semester, students are choosing works to remove or reposition and works to add.

Clear Picture was organized by Marquette faculty members Dr. Eugenia Afinoguénova, associate professor of Spanish, Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, and Dr. Pamela Hill Nettleton, assistant professor, Journalism and Media Studies, Diederich College of Communication, along with Lynne Shumow, curator of education of the Haggerty Museum of Art.

Haggerty at 30
Thirty years ago this month, the Haggerty Museum of Art opened its doors. Since that time the museum has pioneered new ways to connect the visual arts with issues relevant to Marquette University and the world. Through innovative programs and cross-disciplinary exhibitions, the museum fosters critical thought and supports the cultural and intellectual life of Marquette and the wider community. During its 2015 exhibition season the Haggerty will present a series of permanent collection exhibitions that build on and celebrate this rich tradition.