Kirk Hopper Fine Art will present a two-person exhibit, featuring artists Arely Morales and Shaun Roberts.

Morales' and Roberts’ "Displaced" is a sweeping exhibition which refers to both physical and moral barriers that put it right on society’s front burner, the Mexican-American border, the treatment of migrants, the multifaceted issues of identity. Roberts and Morales go deep into the conflicted territory of class and privilege they also ponder the traits that make us most human. Taken together, their paintings feel at once like a reverie and an urgent appeal. The portraits and narratives are crystalline and brutal, uplifting and bleak. Like other artists of the moment, Roberts and Morales reimagine the past, think about how the future might unfold and grapple with the present.

"Displaced" is many things, mythical or dreamlike dystopian dramas, warm celebrations of family and female power, none of which fully conveys its tenacious grip on our attention. What it is not is speedy and facile. Rather, the narratives move carefully, even gracefully, with bold protagonists so compelling that we take time to examine their texture and import. The elastic compositions push our imaginations in any number of directions, offering expressive allegories for a lineage of powerful Mexican women and mysterious characters whose strength, unleashed, could literally shake the earth.

Following the opening reception, the exhibit will be on view through July 13.