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[[logo]]LA LUZ

La Luz: Contemporary Latino Art in the United States

October 21, 2000 - May 27, 2001

National Hispanic Cultural Center
Albuquerque, New Mexico

INTRODUCTION

This wide-ranging exhibition showcases the diversity of Latino visual expression from across the United States. Artists of Hispano, Puerto Rican, Cuban American, Mexican American, and other Latin American heritages have made important contributions to all contemporary aesthetic traditions in the United States. The artists represented in this exhibition are nationally recognized leaders in their art forms. They have mastered their chosen media and visually communicate complex intellectual ideas, political motivations, dreams and wishes, memories, and issues of identity. This exhibition encourages discussion about aesthetic tradition, personal emotion, and national and cultural identity.

Although most of the artists in this exhibition create objects of aesthetic beauty, content remains a primary concern. Some artists first appear to confront, or even repulse, the viewer. By focusing on issues of contemporary political, social, or religious concern, artists also become activists and use their work to point out and propose alternatives to the unpleasant or horrific aspects of life. Others remind us of the richness of heritage, the power of family, and the significance of shared humanitarian concerns.