Contact: Suzie Smith
lib-exhibits@calpoly.edu

SAN LUIS OBISPO – A new exhibition about the Oceano Dunes is set to open in the Special Collections and Archives Gallery, Room 409, in the Robert E. Kennedy Library on Monday, Aug. 31, 2026. An opening reception will be held in the gallery on Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026, from 5-7 p.m. In addition, a panel discussion is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026, at 6 p.m. Details for this event are forthcoming.

The exhibition, titled “Oceano – for seven generations,” will be on view in the Special Collections and Archives Gallery, Room 409, in the Robert E. Kennedy Library. It is free and open to the public Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m., and will be on view through Dec. 11, 2026.

This exhibition highlights nearly a decade of research and outreach by artist Lana Z Caplan, associate professor of photography and video in Cal Poly’s Art and Design Department. The project was first published as a book of the same title by Kehrer Verlag in 2023. A selection of large and small-scale photographs will be presented alongside a video projection, ephemera, and issues of the Dune Forum from the 1930s, drawn from Special Collections. 

“Oceano – for seven generations” interrogates the various histories and uses of the dunes, with an emphasis on the riders at the State Vehicular Recreation Area (SVRA), Oceano residents, the Dunites and members of the yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini Northern Chumash Tribe. Caplan has said the project was inspired by her local proximity to “the dunes made famous by Edward Weston.” As one of history’s most significant American photographers, Weston created iconic images of the California landscape, including those of the Oceano Dunes. In search of his “luminous landscapes,” Caplan instead “encountered ATVs, RVs, and motorcycles,” and learned about the decades-long debate over usage and ownership of the dunes.

“Oceano – for seven generations” will be the 10th exhibition installed in the Robert E. Kennedy Library since the building reopened last year.  Special Collections and Archives organizes and curates rotating exhibitions in the galleries of the library, sharing creative projects, research, and scholarship for the cultural enrichment of the Cal Poly campus and the broader community. For more information, visit the library  webpage for current and upcoming exhibitions.

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