Andrea Bowers is a Los Angeles-based artist whose art spans a variety of mediums, including drawings, video, photography, installations, sculptures, and more. While the medium of her work may vary, her commitment to activism and advocacy remains consistent. Her work addresses many contemporary social issues, including immigration, environmental justice, and women’s rights.

Bowers intentionally uses her work as a platform to amplify the voices of activists, marginalized communities, and individuals affected by contemporary social issues. For example, her 2010 video, The United States v. Tim DeChristopher, highlights environmental activist Tim DeChristopher’s work to prevent the auction of 150,000 acres of Utah’s public land to oil and gas companies. Similarly, My Name Means Future (2020) features interviews with Takota Iron Eyes, a young female member of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, in regards to the proposed Dakota Access Pipeline.

Bowers’ works are not just to be admired, instead, they serve to spark conversations about contemporary issues, inspire people to take action, and in some cases, to provide a direct means of taking action. For example, Your Donations Do Our Work was a project which Bowers completed with fellow feminist Suzanne Lacy. For this project, Bowers and Lacy partnered with a local thrift store to collect unwanted items, refurbish them, and then distribute them to students in exchange for community organization work. You can learn more about Bowers’ works and their impacts at the links below.