Tag: True New Mexico

  • True NM Exhibition Combats State’s Tricultural Myth 

    by Kristin Satterlee

    You’ve probably heard New Mexico’s tricultural myth: the common misconception that the state’s culture is a harmonious blend of Indigenous, Latinx, and Anglo heritages. Setting aside this myth’s other inaccuracies, where does that fable leave the stories of African American and AAPINH (Asian American, Pacific Islander, and Native Hawaiian) New Mexicans who are just as much a part of the tale? 

    Twelve young New Mexicans move the needle on that myth in the fourth annual True NM 2024 Sawubona Exhibition, taking place during this May’s Albuquerque Artwalk on May 3. The True New Mexico program, cosponsored by New Mexico Black Leadership Council and New Mexico Asian Family Center, is designed to combat racism by bringing young people together to share their stories with the community through art. The artists receive a stipend for supplies and to pay for their time, allowing them to focus on creating. But before the art gets made, the artists do a deep dive into their own stories and those of their wider communities. 

    “We asked the youth from the start. … What matters to you?” says Sarah “Zee” Azibo, program coordinator. “When you’re talking about anti-racism, what do you want to talk about? It’s been really powerful. [The youth artists] are the ones who made this what it is.” 

    Those discussions ranged wide and deep from February through April, through topics like affirmative action, equity vs. equality, intersectionality, othering, identity, and self-perception. As well as having those weighty conversations—facilitated by youth coordinators Kai Warrior and Ayami Nakanishi—True NM artists met with BIPOC guest artists and participated in activities: A shoe swap helped them learn deeply about the other youth in their cohort, a Downtown art walk led to reflection about representation in public art, and more.  

    The 2024 True NM cohort selected “Sawubona”—a Zulu term that means “I see you seeing me”—as this year’s exhibition theme. The True NM program does more than combat racism and the tricultural myth: It develops leaders by increasing participants’ self-esteem and awareness of themselves, their communities, and the wider world. You can be part of that development—by attending and supporting the True NM Exhibition, and by getting the kids in your life involved in other arts-based leadership development opportunities like NMBLC’s Roots Summer Leadership Academy (RSLA). RSLA helps youth develop self-esteem and leadership through interpersonal connection, STEM, arts, and social-emotional learning. Registration opened in April, so learn more and sign up at bit.ly/rsla2024

    Don’t take our word for the value of these programs in the development of the youth who will lead us into the future. In the words of 2024 True NM artist Isabella Park, “This is the first time I’ve ever had people that look like me and share the same cultural identities as me speak about the passions I share. … I was able to connect and process traumas and my own experiences that I didn’t realize were there.” 

    True NM Sawubona Exhibition Opening Reception 

    May 3, 2024 

    5:30-8:30pm 

    Orpheum Community Hub  

    500 Second Street NW 

  • Adult Storytime: Esteban – First North American Black Explorer

    Come to the San Pedro Library hear the true story of Esteban (or Estevanico), an enslaved African man, who may have been the first non-native person to visit the southern reaches of the Colorado Plateau in what we now call New Mexico. 5600 Trumbull SE, Albuquerque.

  • True New Mexico 2022 Art Exhibit Photo Gallery

    True New Mexico 2022 Art Exhibit Photo Gallery

    Black and AAPINH Youth Explore Transgenerational Trauma at the 2022 True NM Art Exhibit.

    The New Mexico Black Leadership Council and the New Mexico Asian Family Center hosted the True NM art show on May 28th, 2022. True NM is an anti-racism art initiative collaboration launched by NMBLC and NMAFC in 2021. The art is the work of youth who self-identify as Black and/or AAPINH heritage. This year’s exhibit, titled “Outside the Shell” is based on a quote by Zora Neale Hurston: 

    “The present was an egg laid by the past that had the future inside its shell.”

    — Zora Neale Hurston
    True NM sign

    Family, friends, community members, and city press attended the vibrant event at the NMBLC headquarters on a Saturday afternoon. The artists, ranging in age from 13 to 23, were on deck to talk about their art pieces with guests. LeeCooks Church, a Black-owned business out of Taos, made the trip down to cater the event with a delicious and vegan-friendly spread.

    The art on installation in “Outside the Shell” displayed a wide variety of mediums. Everything from acrylic, mixed media, sculpture, collage, animation, and video were represented. The inspiration for the art began with the desire to break apart the tri-cultural myth: that New Mexico is an ideal, harmonious blend of Anglo, Hispanic, and Indigenous people. Missing from this picture is the presence of Black/African American and Asian American, Pacific Islander, and Native Hawaiian (AAPINH) communities. The True NM anti-racism initiative asks young artists to explore the question “What’s your True New Mexican story?” Their answers included themes of identity, family, colorism, societal pressure, racist violence, and transgenerational trauma. 

    Transgenerational trauma (also called intergenerational trauma) is defined as the ways that adversity experienced by our ancestors gets passed down through generations on a physical, behavioral, emotional, psychological, and cellular level. Jurnee Smollett, co-star of HBO’s Lovecraft Country, referred to this as “blood memory.” 

    True NM artist Prajeeta Dahal, in describing her painting, said that transgenerational trauma affects a person whether they are aware of it or not. Ané Careaga-Coleman, in their video essay, illustrates how the anime series Fruits Basket helped them understand and deal with this phenomenon in their own life. It’s through this deepening awareness that one can begin to examine and interrupt the detrimental effects of the pain from our parents, and their parents, that impact us to this day. Exploration through artistic expression is one of the ways we can begin to transform our lives and create a thriving legacy for future generations.

    Check out the photo gallery from the True NM “Outside the Shell” art exhibit event below. Click on a photo to view it full size in a new window.

    Watch coverage of the True NM “Outside the Shell” art exhibit event from KOAT.

    The project was made possible by funds received by the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund through an Anti-Racism Response Network Grant and the New Mexico Humanities Council.


    Shannon Moreau is the Editor for the NMBLC EQ Blog

  • True New Mexico Art Exhibit Showcases Talent of Black and AAPINH Youth

    True New Mexico Art Exhibit Showcases Talent of Black and AAPINH Youth

    Black and AAPINH youth dismantle the tri-cultural myth with “Outside the Shell” art exhibit.

    The New Mexico Black Leadership Council and New Mexico Asian Family Center join forces once again for True New Mexico 2022. The True NM anti-racism youth art project launched in 2021 with an online photo exhibit and a show at the May ArtWalk. This year a new group of Black and AAPINH youth are creating “Outside the Shell.” The title is inspired by writer and cultural anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston.

    “The present was an egg laid by the past that had the future inside its shell.”

    — Zora Neale Hurston

    The vision behind True NM is to deconstruct the tri-cultural myth: that New Mexico is a place where Hispanics, Indigenous, and Anglo people live together in harmony. The problems with this myth is that it ignores ongoing racism and erases the experiences of Asian American Pacific Islander Native Hawaiian (AAPINH) and Black people in New Mexico. The True NM project consists of youth artists from the Black and AAPINH communities. Their artwork answers the prompt, “What’s your True New Mexican story?”

    Join us Saturday, May 28th, 2022 for the “Outside the Shell” art exhibit. The show runs from 1:00 to 3:00PM and takes place at the NMBLC office in the heart of the International District of Albuquerque: 1258 Ortiz Dr. SE, Albuquerque, NM 87108. 

    The project was made possible by funds received by the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund through an Anti-Racism Response Network Grant and the New Mexico Humanities Council.

    “Love isn’t about what we did yesterday; it’s about what we do today and tomorrow and the day after.”

    — Grace Lee Boggs
  • True New Mexico Artwalk Photo Gallery

    True New Mexico Artwalk Photo Gallery

    Black and AAPI Youth dismantle the tricultural myth at the ABQ Artwalk.

    The New Mexico Black Leadership Council and New Mexico Asian Family Center were in force at the First Friday ABQ Artwalk on May 7th. We installed the True New Mexico Photovoice popup in the parking lot of the B Ruppe Drugstore gallery, along with several other artists and artisans sharing this collective space. A bright, sunny day in the wake of the state’s gradual reopening proved the perfect backdrop for bringing the message of these young artists to the greater community. 

    “In the form of cubism and collage, I create pieces that reflect my Tibetan-American experience and the abundant issues and joys the Asian American Pacific Islander community faces.”

    — True NM Artist Sowang Kundeling, She/Her/Hers, AAPI (Tibetan)

    The collection of self-portraits from young Black & AAPI New Mexicans dismantle the tricultural myth and answer the question “What’s YOUR TRUE NEW MEXICAN story?”

    “I photograph my form as if to say,

    “I am.”

    “I am.”

    “I am.”

    —True NM Artist Donald Roberts, They/Them/Theirs, Jamaican

    Check out our photo gallery from the True NM ABQ Artwalk Popup below.

    Watch the powerful video for the original song “Why Not Me” by True New Mexico Artist Kai Warrior:

    To learn more about the artists and view their projects, click here.

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