We are excited to share our newest publications in person at the Jersey Art Book Fair on May 1-3, 2026 at Mana Contemporary, Jersey City, NJ. We are excited to share new Hox Zodiac prints, postcards, and journals designed by Maryam Razi who hosted the most recent Hox Zodiac online dinner honoring the Lunar New Year of the Fire Horse, with the guest artist CC Hart. We will also feature the limited edition [Alien] Star Dust Artist Book and postcards designed by Ivy Lovett.
On Sunday, May 3 from 4:30-6pm, Victoria and Maryam will lead a participatory performance, "HOX Year of the Fire Horse: A Tasting Ritual" at the Framing Gallery at Mana Contemporary at the JAB Fair. Presented as a live, durational tasting ritual, the experience unfolds in cycles, allowing visitors to enter and exit freely. Centered on the Fire Horse—an emblem of intensity, transformation, movement, and passion—participants engage through taste, smell, sound, and collective ritual. Each tasting becomes a portal, linking the body to planetary cycles, mythology, and contemporary life.
In traditional Chinese medicine, the Horse is associated with the Heart—governing blood and consciousness (Shen).
This is not a demo. It is a shared activation.
If you are in NJ / NY area, drop into our booth and join us for the performance!
As hosts of the HOX Zodiac Celebration, we welcome you into the spirit of the Year of the Fire Horse — a lunar cycle that carries energy, movement, and transformation. In the language of HOX, the horse represents momentum and connection, bringing together art, science, and cultural imagination. We invite you to gather with us across shared digital space: bring a dish to share virtually, tell a story, reflect on your experiences, and exchange culture and knowledge as we celebrate this vibrant new cycle together.
12PM PT, February 22, 2026 | From wherever you are,
Join us as we celebrate the Lunar New Year of the Fire Horse alongside inspiring artists, scientists, scholars, and the vibrant community born under the sign of the horse. This special gathering brings together creativity, knowledge, and cultural spirit, inviting you to connect, reflect, and begin the new cycle with energy, curiosity, and shared celebration.
We’re thrilled for another inspiring year at TEDx Manhattan Beach! This year, we’ll be showcasing the SciArt Lab + Studio Summer Program, along with our PST ART project "Atmosphere of Sound." It’s a great opportunity to reconnect with old friends and meet new ones from a variety of creative and inspiring fields. Meet us there at the EXPO!
Nestled on the beautiful campus of Mira Costa High School, renowned for its exceptional academic and athletic programs in Manhattan Beach, TEDxMB offers a unique experience. Enjoy a curated day of insightful talks and entertainment in the spacious auditorium, complemented by an engaging outdoor expo center. Amidst swaying palm trees and gentle sunshine, attendees can interact with innovative brands and savor delicious culinary treats, making it a memorable day for all.
February 10th marks the official start of the Lunar New Year of the Wood Dragon, and as part of our ritual series of gatherings, we will host two celebrations honoring the dragons of our community on
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2024!
HYBRID – 12:00 pm to 1:30 pm PST
On-site – UCLA Haines Hall, room 110 – as part of the EAT or be EATEN: HOX Zodiac class sponsored by Fiat Lux and the Rothman Foundation
On-line – public
ON-SITE – 4 pm to 6 pm PST – Gathering around the table
– UCLA Art Sci studio, Broad Arts Center, room 5250
WATCH THE RECORDING:
Honoring the Dragons in our community:
Adam Glaser, scientist (online from Seattle)
Alyce DeMarais, Professor in the Biology department at the University of Puget Sound (online from Seattle)
Anuradha Vikram, author and lecturer, co-curator for the "Atmosphere of Sound: Sonic Art in Times of Climate Disruption”; ArtSci Center's project, part of the Getty PST;
Gabriel Tolson, curatorial assistant for the "Atmosphere of Sound: Sonic Art in Times of Climate Disruption” project, part of the Getty PST;
Chandler McWilliams, media artist, author, Design Media Arts faculty
Clarissa Ribeiro, artist and educator (online from Brazil)
E. J. Koh, poet and author (online from Seattle)
Evan “Otter” Wilkinson, UCLA Royce Hall Venue Manager
Kathy Brew, artist, writer, and educator (online from NY)
Malina Stefanovska, Professor of French and Francophone Studies, UCLA ELTS Faculty
Rob Richards, artist/engineer
Rowena Kou, DMA graduate student.
Sagan Yee, media artist
As we reflect on the year's challenges and find solace in the community, we invite you to the latest iteration of our Hox Zodiac meal series: the 2024 HOXLIDAY gathering and open house!
You are invited to enrich our gathering with unique stories, culinary traditions, and wisdom as informed by your respective Zodiac sign or cultural background–or even, if inclined, your HOX-gene character.
Optional: You are welcome to bring small food offerings based on the ingredients recommended for your Zodiac sign (EAT); or to offer yourself (BE EATEN). Don't worry if you aren't able to bring food – stories, poems, sound/music, or other offerings informed by your Zodiac placement are equally encouraged.
For inspiration and guidance on preparing foods, please refer to our website hoxzodiac.com.
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We especially want to show our sincere appreciation for the dedicated UCLA staff members whose generous support has been instrumental to the work of our team and for our students at UCLA, whose extraordinary commitment and effort lightened this particularly tough year. Our gathering is intended to honor their determination, fortitude, and exceptional contributions.
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We eagerly anticipate celebrating the spirit of the HOX ZODIAC, reflecting on the past year, and looking forward to the Year of the Dragon with hope and unity.
UCLA ArtSci Center is excited to take part in TEDx Manhattan Beach again, showcasing the "Alien Star Dust" AR experience. This year’s event, FUTURE SHAPING, will be held on November 4, 2023, at Mira Costa High School.
ALIEN STAR DUST: https://alienstardust.com
The Hox Zodiac allows the human-audience to experience the shared history and potential of genetic diversity among animals. Here, the idea of the Hox gene as a binding element is introduced and the Chinese animal zodiac and dinner table as the structure / space for discussion is employed, allowing the format to build based on the audience interaction. In neuroscience this is the emergent property of network connections, where a simple array of neurons can give rise to complex behaviors through interactions and adaptations.
The Hox Zodiac Dinner is a performative culinary event. There will be 12 small courses served to the participants. The event draws parallels to universally shared genetics and the Chines Zodiac symbols. It is quiet and meditative. There will be participants in the performance, and the event is open to all viewers to share the experience.
This is the final event of the ART AS SOCIAL PRACTICE: Technologies for Change exhibition.
Hox Zodiac is inspired by the Hox genes, which are essential to the embryonic creation of body plans of different animals in the framework of the Chinese Zodiac. Beyond our current cultural immersion that pivots on animal experimentation and industrial agriculture, we ask that you reconsider us human animals as sharing the cycles of time and space with those on the zodiac wheel. At this hybrid event, we invite you to share a meal offering for breakfast, lunch, or dinner as your animal sign, to partake in food and exchange conversations around our relationship to animals as pets, food, science experiments, and myths.
You are welcome to share what you like to EAT or offer yourself and BE EATEN.
Sign up for the monthly gatherings of animals around the table – EAT or be EATEN! We celebrate the DOG with leftovers from Thanksgiving.
About the UCLA SCI ART SUMMER program:
In the highly competitive Sci|Art Studio + Lab, students are immersed in science and art practices to simultaneously develop and sharpen analytical and creative skills. This program prepares students for interdisciplinary thinking before they begin their undergraduate education. During this intensive two-week program, students make connections between cutting-edge scientific research, popular culture, and contemporary arts. Through historical retrospectives, surveys of current art-science collaborations, and science fiction movie screenings, students are exposed to the interface of science, art, and culture with a focus on multidisciplinary collaborations.
ART SCI SOUND WALK AT TEDx Manhattan Beach:
The audience is invited to a guided sound walk from the North side of the Tedx Exhibition to the South side. This unique sound walk creates a connection and opens a conversation between ocean and space. All visitors will have a chance to experience a collaborative composition by Patricia Cadavid, Anna Nacher, Ivana Dama, Clarissa Ribeiro and Victoria Vesna.
In a Series of Monthly Animal Gatherings,
We Move Around the Wheel of the Chinese Zodiac. We are on the 9th Animal...MONKEY!
Featuring Fantastic People Born in the Sign of the MONKEY
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Cristina Albu (Missouri)
Cristina Albu is an art historian, educator, and writer focusing on crossovers between contemporary art, cognitive sciences, and technology. She is Associate Professor of Contemporary Art History at University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC). Albu is the author of Mirror Affect: Seeing Self, Observing Others in Contemporary Art (Minnesota University Press, 2016) and the co-editor (with Dawna Schuld) of Perception and Agency in Shared Spaces of Contemporary Art (Routledge, 2018). Her writings have appeared in scholarly anthologies (e.g. Nervous Systems, Hybrid Practices, Framings, The Permanence of the Transient, Crossing Cultures) and journals (e.g. Afterimage, Artnodes, Camera Obscura, and the Comparative Media Arts Journal). At UMKC, Albu teaches courses on global contemporary art, participatory and site-specific tendencies, museum studies, and the role of emotion in art reception.
Girija Hariharan (India)
Girija Hariharan, is an artist and Muralist based out of Bangalore, India. She works with street art, large art installations and art intervention workshops to effect social change and community healing. Recognised as one of the top innovators of Bangalore, her street art and interviews have appeared in multiple publications. Along with traditional fine art mediums, Girija explores body art, music, poetry, tech art, graphic design, book covers, illustrations. Her original artworks are sold worldwide, with her primary themes amalgamate feminism, mythology, anthropology, environment and spirituality.
Mana Salehi (Spain)
Mana Salehi, video artist and researcher of Iranian origin, has lived and worked in Barcelona since 2004. She received her doctorate from the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Barcelona. The subject of her research and artistic production is “Water and the symbols of the garden in contemporary art”. She has done several researches in Japan, the United States and Iran. She has participated in various international and national solo and group exhibitions. In her work, she explores environmental crises and human emotions through visual poetics. She has been a professor of Visual Arts and new media at various universities in Tehran and has also organized a workshop at the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Barcelona.
In 2020 she was a member of the jury of the Asian Film Festival Barcelona organized by Casa Asia and, she was a professor of course secrets of Persian garden at Casa Asia.
Currently, she is displaying her recent video art The Voice of Saffron at the Royal Botanical Garden of Madrid.
She is also a member of Woman Eco Artists Dialog (WEAD) in the United States.
