“Identidad, Dreams y Marchas!” was organized by Arte Mexicano en Indiana, an arts non-profit organized with the mission to highlight artists with Mexican heritage in Indiana.
“Identidad, Dreams y Marchas!,” a visual art collection featuring Midwestern artists of Mexican heritage currently on display at Indianapolis Artsgarden, 110 W. Washington St., has been extended through November 19th, and will be celebrated with a reception on Sunday, October 10th, 3-5pm. Admission is free and the collection and reception are family friendly. The event will be in Spanish.
“Identidad, Dreams y Marchas!” was organized by Arte Mexicano en Indiana, an arts non-profit organized with the mission to highlight artists with Mexican heritage in Indiana. The show opened on September 15th to kick off Hispanic Heritage Month, a day before Mexican Independence Day on September 16th.
“We are always looking for our identity. Some of our families came here with the immigrant dream for a better life. But when we get here, we are always creating initiatives or social movements because some of us are of different status, marching for rights we don’t already have,” said Eduardo Luna, show curator and founder of Arte Mexicano en Indiana, on the collection’s title and themes. “Identidad” means “identity” in Spanish, while “marchas” means marches, calling upon historical protest marches through Indianapolis and other cities.
The October 10th reception will bring together Mexican talent from across the state with special musical and dance performances by Grupo Folclórico Macehuani, Grupo Folclórico Infantil Macehuani, Grammy award winner Juan-Carlos Alarcon, and singer Ana Cisneros.
The visual art displayed includes a collage by Alliance for Immigrant Justice, an IUPUI student activist group; a piñata installation from Global Prep Academy students and their teacher, Maestra Elizabeth Vazquez Mozqueda of Michoacán, Mexico; and drawings gathered from throughout the state by the Mexican Consulate of Indianapolis, created by children celebrating their Mexican heritage in “Este es mi México.”
The exhibition rounds out with featured emerging and established artists Esperanza Alonzo, Sayra Campos, Alejandra Carrillo, Kcun DeAragon, Jennifer Delgadillo, Daniel Del Real, Jackie Espinosa, Joy Hernandez-Butler, Peter Julian, Ricardo Xavier Leyva Serment, Gera Mares, Jovana Mezo, Gaby Mojica, Valadezza Monica, Hector Morales, Samuel Penaloza, and Juan Gabriel Tiscareno.
Luna sees this celebration of artists and their work as an opportunity to be proud of heritage and community, and of an identity that he feels is often diminished by establishment conversations in regards to the entirety of Latino culture, or used as a slur or scapegoat especially in recent political discourse.
“I’m proud of these artists that identify as Mexicans or of Mexican heritage and that they wanted to be part of this show because it means that they are not afraid of calling themselves Mexicans,” Luna said. “That’s something good to celebrate and will encourage more artists in the community to come out and be seen as part of a group. This allows us to celebrate our community and a country where some of us came from, or where our parents or grandparents came from. It’s the right thing to do for the next generation of Mexican-Americans that live in Indianapolis that may not currently find themselves represented in art or institutions. We are creating our own exhibitions and our own spaces and I’m happy that the Arts Council of Indianapolis allowed us to do it right in the center of the city and the state.”
Arte Mexicano en Indiana (AMI) was founded by Luna in 2020 to encourage and promote Mexican art, music, and culture in Indiana through collaborations and the organization and promotion of public culture events, to better emphasize the perspective and cultural value Mexican people contribute in the state. AMI was the recipient of a $25,000 grant from the Ford Foundation in 2021. Luna, originally from Acapulco, Mexico, and having relocated to central Illinois in the 90’s with his family, serves as the executive director and draws on nearly a decade of experience in program production to bring rich, authentic culture—in context and first-hand—to Hoosiers via events throughout the year, such as Mayo Mas Mexicano in May and the Día De Muertos later this month at the Eiteljorg Museum.
“Identidad, Dreams y Marchas!” is presented in collaboration with the Arts Council of Indianapolis; Morales Marketing, LLC; and Consulado de México en Indianápolis; and is funded by the Nicholas H. Noyes Jr. Memorial Foundation and The International Center Festival Fund.
For more information or event updates, please visit: https://www.facebook.com/events/383471953470474
Or the Arte Mexicano en Indiana Facebook page, @artemexicanoenindiana
2021/10/10 - 2021/10/10
Additional time info:
“Identidad, Dreams y Marchas!,” a visual art collection featuring Midwestern artists of Mexican heritage currently on display at Indianapolis Artsgarden, 110 W. Washington St., has been extended through November 19th, and will be celebrated with a reception on Sunday, October 10th, 3-5pm. Admission is free and the collection and reception are family friendly. The event will be in Spanish.
“Identidad, Dreams y Marchas!” was organized by Arte Mexicano en Indiana, an arts non-profit organized with the mission to highlight artists with Mexican heritage in Indiana. The show opened on September 15th to kick off Hispanic Heritage Month, a day before Mexican Independence Day on September 16th.
“We are always looking for our identity. Some of our families came here with the immigrant dream for a better life. But when we get here, we are always creating initiatives or social movements because some of us are of different status, marching for rights we don’t already have,” said Eduardo Luna, show curator and founder of Arte Mexicano en Indiana, on the collection’s title and themes. “Identidad” means “identity” in Spanish, while “marchas” means marches, calling upon historical protest marches through Indianapolis and other cities.
The October 10th reception will bring together Mexican talent from across the state with special musical and dance performances by Grupo Folclórico Macehuani, Grupo Folclórico Infantil Macehuani, Grammy award winner Juan-Carlos Alarcon, and singer Ana Cisneros.
The visual art displayed includes a collage by Alliance for Immigrant Justice, an IUPUI student activist group; a piñata installation from Global Prep Academy students and their teacher, Maestra Elizabeth Vazquez Mozqueda of Michoacán, Mexico; and drawings gathered from throughout the state by the Mexican Consulate of Indianapolis, created by children celebrating their Mexican heritage in “Este es mi México.”
The exhibition rounds out with featured emerging and established artists Esperanza Alonzo, Sayra Campos, Alejandra Carrillo, Kcun DeAragon, Jennifer Delgadillo, Daniel Del Real, Jackie Espinosa, Joy Hernandez-Butler, Peter Julian, Ricardo Xavier Leyva Serment, Gera Mares, Jovana Mezo, Gaby Mojica, Valadezza Monica, Hector Morales, Samuel Penaloza, and Juan Gabriel Tiscareno.
Luna sees this celebration of artists and their work as an opportunity to be proud of heritage and community, and of an identity that he feels is often diminished by establishment conversations in regards to the entirety of Latino culture, or used as a slur or scapegoat especially in recent political discourse.
“I’m proud of these artists that identify as Mexicans or of Mexican heritage and that they wanted to be part of this show because it means that they are not afraid of calling themselves Mexicans,” Luna said. “That’s something good to celebrate and will encourage more artists in the community to come out and be seen as part of a group. This allows us to celebrate our community and a country where some of us came from, or where our parents or grandparents came from. It’s the right thing to do for the next generation of Mexican-Americans that live in Indianapolis that may not currently find themselves represented in art or institutions. We are creating our own exhibitions and our own spaces and I’m happy that the Arts Council of Indianapolis allowed us to do it right in the center of the city and the state.”
Arte Mexicano en Indiana (AMI) was founded by Luna in 2020 to encourage and promote Mexican art, music, and culture in Indiana through collaborations and the organization and promotion of public culture events, to better emphasize the perspective and cultural value Mexican people contribute in the state. AMI was the recipient of a $25,000 grant from the Ford Foundation in 2021. Luna, originally from Acapulco, Mexico, and having relocated to central Illinois in the 90’s with his family, serves as the executive director and draws on nearly a decade of experience in program production to bring rich, authentic culture—in context and first-hand—to Hoosiers via events throughout the year, such as Mayo Mas Mexicano in May and the Día De Muertos later this month at the Eiteljorg Museum.
“Identidad, Dreams y Marchas!” is presented in collaboration with the Arts Council of Indianapolis; Morales Marketing, LLC; and Consulado de México en Indianápolis; and is funded by the Nicholas H. Noyes Jr. Memorial Foundation and The International Center Festival Fund.
For more information or event updates, please visit: https://www.facebook.com/events/383471953470474
Or the Arte Mexicano en Indiana Facebook page, @artemexicanoenindiana
Indianapolis Artsgarden
110 W Washington St., Indianapolis, IN 46204