The Museum of Contemporary Art presents Cecilia Vicuña’s new exhibition, The Dream of Water: Quipu of Encounters Maricunga, at MOCA Grand Avenue from November 15, 2026, through June 6, 2027. The project is one of two inaugural exhibitions presented under the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Environment and Art Prize.
The exhibition examines the ecological threats facing the Maricunga Salt Flats in the Atacama Desert caused by lithium mining. Centered on the ancient Andean quipu knotting system, the installation highlights the endangered ecosystems, wildlife, and ancestral territory of the Indigenous Colla people.
Exhibits include Parina Quipu, a large sculpture made of unspun Chilean wool dyed in pink hues that represent the Andean flamingo. An adjacent gallery displays Salar de Maricunga Quipu de Encuentro, a five-channel video installation tracking the artist’s journeys to the salt flats accompanied by a polyphonic sound poem composed by Cosmo Sheldrake.
Admission information and general museum access details are available through MOCA Grand Avenue. A public conversation between Vicuña and UCLA professor Elizabeth DeLoughrey will take place at the Ahmanson Auditorium on opening day, November 15, at 3 p.m.
Organized by MOCA Senior Curator José Luis Blondet and Curatorial Assistant Ariana Rizo, the exhibition will be accompanied by an illustrated catalogue published in spring 2027. Vicuña will also hold a community ritual at MOCA in spring 2027 connecting water advocates across the Los Angeles basin.
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