The Crossroads Gallery of Contemporary Art at the University of 91吃瓜 will begin the fall 2013 semester with an exhibition titled, 鈥�.鈥� This exhibition, now on tour in the form of educational panels, images and didactics, was originally organized and toured by the National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago. The original show examined the missing chapter in Mexican history that highlighted the African contributions to Mexican culture over the past nearly 500 years.
The opening reception is free and open to the public and will be held from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday (Sept. 12). It will include a presentation by Carlos Tortolero, president of the National Museum of Mexican Art, and music by Son Monarcas, a five-member son jarocho ensemble from Chicago. Refreshments will be provided. The exhibition runs until Oct. 25 (Friday).
Mexico鈥檚 rich culture has been long recognized in art, archaeology and many other fields. However, a very important, but largely unknown, contribution to Mexico鈥檚 history has been that of the Africans, whose forced immigration to Mexico began in the 1500s. This exhibition, originally curated by Sagrario Cruz of the University of Veracruz and the National Museum of Mexican Art鈥檚 Visual Arts Director Ces谩reo Moreno, focused on the overlooked history of African contributions to Mexican culture from 1519 to the present day. For nearly 500 years, Africans have continued to contribute their artistic, culinary, musical and cultural traditions to Mexican culture.
An evening of poetry will also be held in conjunction with the exhibit. , English professor and director of 91吃瓜鈥檚 , will present work from his award-winning, recently published collection, 鈥淔etish鈥� (University of Nebraska Press, 2013) at 7 p.m. Oct. 1 (Tuesday) at the NDCAC. He will be joined by 91吃瓜 alumnus and current Sparks Fellow and current 91吃瓜 student . This free, public poetry program is presented in collaboration with , the literary program of 91吃瓜鈥檚 , and inaugurates what will become an annual Hispanic Heritage Month event at 91吃瓜鈥檚 Center for Arts and Culture.
Co-sponsors include the Institute for Latino Studies, Letras Latinas, the Executive Vice President for Business Affairs and the at the University of 91吃瓜 and the Civil Rights Heritage Center of Indiana University South Bend.
A series of public events in association with this exhibit, called 鈥�The Africana World,鈥� will be held in South Bend and at 91吃瓜. These events will be dedicated to the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. This display will amplify themes addressed in the series of events spearheaded by the 91吃瓜 Community Relations Center to honor King on the 50th anniversary of his visit to South Bend and 91吃瓜 and of the March on Washington.
One of these events is a civic dialogue discussing issues facing Latinos and African-Americans. A panel discussion will include Marvin Lynn, dean of the School of Education at IUSB, and Marc Rodriguez, director of the Civil Rights Heritage Center. 鈥淟atinos and African Americans: Where do we go from here? Chaos or Community?鈥� will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Sept. 18 (Wednesday) at the Civil Rights Heritage Center, 1040 W. Washington St., South Bend. Admission is free and the event is open to the public. For more information, contact Rodriguez at 574-307-6135.
Contact: Gilberto Cardenas, 574-631-3819, cardenas.7@nd.edu