MoMA PS1 in New York City will host the first United States survey of Mexican artist Teresa Margolles this fall. Trained as a forensic pathologist, Margolles creates works using organic and bodily materials from homicide victims, morgues, and crime scenes. The exhibition will feature pieces confronting murder and violence along the US-Mexico border, including a 2026 evolution of her ongoing series "Air" (2003–), where a gallery will be humidified with water carrying degradable material from homicide sites. The Museum of Modern Art will also present a new experiential installation, "Aproximación al lugar de los hechos (Approaching the Scene)" (2026), starting September 17, which drips water carrying evidence of violent death onto heated steel plates.
This survey matters because it brings Margolles's unflinching examination of grief, violence, and the politics of death to a major U.S. institution for the first time, highlighting how her work transforms forensic evidence into poignant commentary on border violence and societal neglect. Curator Ana Janevski notes that Margolles shifts grief from memorial spaces into everyday life, making the political personal through proximity to loss. The exhibition underscores the growing recognition of artists who address systemic violence and human rights issues, particularly those affecting marginalized communities along the U.S.-Mexico border.