Immigrant/Refugee Narrative Mural Paintings, Exhibition and Panel Discussion.

For several years, the media has reported stories about the Immigration crisis in the Southwest border between the United States and Mexico. Being a native of the Rio Grande Valley in South Texas, I realized that the sound bites were not fully capturing the complexity of the situation. This visual arts project portraying the border concerns will expand upon the current media reports and express the voices of the people affected by these events, as well as promote awareness and dialogue. This is too big a story to report through raw journalism. It is important for me, as an artist, to address contemporary concerns and create a visual record portraying these events with an artistic sensibility.

The theme running through my current paintings is a merger of the visual vernacular of the Baroque and current border issues affecting Mexico and the United States – People whose lives have been affected by social economic conflicts such as immigration policies and the war on drugs. It is the dramatic lives and stories of immigrants, refugees and individuals from border communities whose narratives inspire me to capture their stories on canvas.

I have visited the Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley’s (CCRGV) Humanitarian Respite Center, in McAllen Texas conducting interviews with recently arrived immigrants and refugees. I have gathered their stories through audio recordings and drawings of the immigrants interviewed. Using their stories as inspiration I have produced paintings narrating the struggles of their journeys.

Artist Rigoberto A. González, who has won a Migration Narratives grant through the Institute of Diversity and Civic Life, is collaborating artist Luis A. Corpus, Chair of the Department of Art at South Texas College, and artist Olga Alanis, art instructor at South Texas College. These artists will be participating in a exhibition at the CLAA space, and González will be giving a lecture at the roundtable events on November 10th. Artist Olga Alanis, who is a UTRGV MFA alumna and currently an art instructor at South Texas College, is one of González’s former students and collaborators. She will be participating with Luis Corpus and Rigoberto A. González in the artists’ workshop with students from both UTRGV and STC. All interested participants in our community are invited to attend.

Location of the event on November 9-10:

The Center for Latin American Arts

1201 West University Drive

Edinburg, Texas 78539

Library Second Floor, ELIBR 2.1

Mariposas en el Muro. Butterflies on the Border Wall Oil on linen Rigoberto A Gonzalez

Tuesday, November 9

2:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Artists’ Workshop: Painting with Cochineal Red

Join artists Luis Corpus, Olga Alanis, and Rigoberto A. González to create artworks using these materials from cochineal in a workshop that shares stories and speaks metaphorically about the urgent crisis on the border.

Painting Workshop

Cochineal is a red dye consisting of the dried, pulverized bodies of certain insects, Dactylopius coccus of the Coccidae family, which are cactus-eating cochineal insects native to tropical and subtropical America. Cochineal is used to produce scarlet, crimson, orange, and other colors, and it is also incorporated to prepare pigments such as lake and carmine. The dye was introduced into Europe from México, where it had been used long before the arrival of the Spanish. Cochineal is found in South Texas and is native to this area.

Activities

Participants will explore the process of extracting a variety of red dyes from

cochineal, paint with cochineal on paper, and create a collaborative group artwork created by all.

Participants

Artist exhibition in the CLAA and Gallery Talk with participating artists

• Luis Corpus, Chair Department of Art, South Texas College

• Olga Alanis, MFA UTRGV 2020, Art Instructor, South Texas College

• Rigoberto A. González, Faculty Member and Lecturer, School of Art & Design, UTRGV