Cultural Ties

Cultural Ties is an interdisciplinary exhibition that celebrates Latin American culture while confronting stereotypes. Interweaving the photography of Tina Gutierrez and Andrea Sabugo with mixed media works by Ximena Flores and Rebecca Nava Soto, alongside a selection of short films curated by Mary Leonard, the exhibition offers a multi-sensory exploration of place, history, and identity. 

Gutierrez’s América series presents large-scale portraits celebrating the diversity and strength of Hispanic women, collaborating with her subjects to reclaim narratives and challenge assumptions. Similarly, Sabugo’s paired images draw on editorial fashion photography and traditional dress, hair, and cultural objects to present authentic representations of Mexican and Chicano/a heritage, inviting viewers to reconsider assumptions. 

Mixed media works by Nava Soto and Flores add tactile and symbolic dimensions. Nava Soto, inspired by Mesoamerican materials and writing systems, considers contemporary issues through a Xicanx lens, reflecting on her Midwest immigrant upbringing. Flores’ wall boxes filled with natural materials evoke life cycles, migration, and enduring ties to homeland, celebrating resilience and cultural continuity. 

The final component, Leonard’s film series, Sin Vergüenza, features Cuban and Puerto Rican performers, unapologetically confident and often breaking gender norms, blending the political and the sensual. Together, these works exalt identity, heritage, and representation across photography, sculpture, installation, and video. By honoring ancestry, ritual, and lived experience, the exhibition affirms dignity, resilience, and pride, preserving Latin American cultural knowledge and narratives for future generations.

Visual Artists: Ximena Flores, Tina Gutierrez, Andrea Sabugo, Rebecca Nava Soto

Filmmakers: Lorraine Jones Molina, Andrea Narvaez, Ramón Pereda, Ela Troyano, Val Vega