Lexa Walsh: Consolidated Mess is an interactive artist residency and exhibition informed by the Hamilton Airfield historical archives housed at the Hamilton Field History Museum in Novato, California. The project’s title draws from the base’s common space—the mess hall—which brought together all factions of the military for general convening, discussion, and the sharing of meals. 

Walsh is interested in the complexities of war—how do we find value in some wars over others, who is valued, and how does this value change with time? She will be in residence in the Second Floor Gallery for five weeks, and open to the public for “office hours” while developing the project. Walsh’s research and visual output will be on view following the residency period as a six-week installation and animated by a series of public programs during the run of the exhibition. 

Office hours will take place on a weekly basis throughout the residency period: 

August 20-September 30, Wed & Thu 12:00 to 4:00 pm
Sundays Aug 28, Sep 4, Sep 11 at 12:00 to 4:00 pm
Alternative time slots can be reserved by contacting the artist directly at Email. 

Says Walsh, “I make context-responsive participatory projects and exhibitions about power and value. I act as anthropologist, archivist, curator, facilitator, and experience-maker, fusing these practices to create physical and emotional spaces for social engagement and institutional critique."

Read the article “Novato museum exhibit takes on the complexities of war” in the MarinIJ.

Military Insignia Ceramics Workshop with Ehren Tool
Sunday, September 25, 10am - 3pm 

About the Artist: Walsh is an artist and cultural worker based in Oakland. She makes projects, exhibitions, publications, and objects that invite social engagement, institutional critique, and radical hospitality. Walsh founded and oversaw Oakland Stock, a branch of the Sunday Soup network micro-granting dinner series that supports artists’ projects. She was a recipient of Southern Exposure’s Alternative Exposure Award, the CEC Artslink Award, the Gunk Grant, and was a de Young Artist Fellow. She has participated in numerous exhibitions, projects, and performances across the country. Learn more

Image Captions:

Lexa Walsh, Medals, detail, 2022, Glazed ceramic and mixed media, dimensions variable

Lexa Walsh, Clubhouse, 2022, Reclaimed wood, cardboard, contact paper, reclaimed furniture, burlap, netting, ribbon, air force pins, found ephemera, WWII era photographs, Afghan war rug, sound, social practice and mixed media, 96 x 96 x 96 in.

This exhibition is generously supported by the County of Marin Community Service Fund.