Hispanic Heritage Month: Upcoming exhibit at Albright-Knox Northland spotlights first- and second-generation Latinx artists

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – This Hispanic Heritage Month, the Albright-Knox announced a new exhibition at Albright-Knox Northland which will feature work from six first- or second-generation immigrant Latinx artists.

Comunidades Visibles (Visible Communities): The Materiality of Migration goes on display Feb. 12 at the gallery, 612 Northland Ave.

The works from the artists will combine materials and techniques from their countries of origin, other colonized places, and their present context, Albright-Knox curatorial assistant Andrea Alvarez said.

“Collectively, all of the objects will invite visitors to question their relationship to their own history, and to think about the communities they belong to,” Alvarez added.

One of the artists that will be featured in the exhibit is Buffalo-based artist Felipe Shibuya. Shibuya was born in Brazil and is a student at the University of Buffalo. An ecologist, he has shifted gears to become a “bioartist”, Alvarez said.

“He has worked on this collaborative project using raw data from Census info to explore the history of immigration into the U.S. and sort of transforming it into a really beautiful video and print practice that celebrates the origins of all Americans today,” Alvarez explained.

Most of the artwork that will be featured in Comunidades Visibles will have a sculptural quality- and there will be some large-scale art installations that visitors will be able to walk on and around.

Alvarez says the collection will help address difficult narratives about immigration, both contemporary and historical.

“Hopefully, it will remind people that almost everyone who walks through these doors is a product of immigration,” Alvarez said. “It might not be them- it might be a couple of generations removed, but many of us are here for that reason. I think that does bear reminding, and celebration.”

The exhibition will be accompanied by a schedule of programs, virtual and possibly in-person, Alvarez added.

Albright-Knox Northland’s current exhibit, Swoon: Seven Contemplations, is currently open by appointment.

Comunidades Visibles will run from Feb. 12 to May 16. Admission at Albright-Knox Northland is always pay-what-you-wish.