Curatorial Statement

Las Raíces Jovenes of Tomorrow

The third exhibition, Las Raíces Jovenes of Tomorrow, of the year-long cultural art celebration, La Descolonización del Arte: A Celebration of Our Raíces, displays numerous artworks by emerging Hispanic/Latina/Latine/Latino/Latinx Deaf, DeafBlind, DeafDisabled, Hard of Hearing, and Late-Deafened artist children from all over the nation. The artwork collected features a vibrant variety of mediums such as wood, visual performance art, paintings, drawings, sculptures, digital art, construction paper, and mixed media.

Throughout the Las Raíces Jovenes of Tomorrow exhibition, there is a sense of cultural pride, joy, cultural longing/memory, affection, community, and the beauty of nature. Although subtle, there is also a layer of emerging self-awareness and embrace of their multiple identities from the countries of North, Central, and South America and the Caribbean. This reflects the crucial purpose of the La Descolonización del Arte by paying homage to our rich raíces (roots) with pride and strength. As evident by some of the young artists’ portrayal of diverse precious food from “home,” our rich raíces do not come from a single story, however, we all blossom and soar high together in the light of the sun. Blossoming and soaring together is a necessity as they get to know their roots and stories while developing empathy for others who do not look like them. Watching our young artists soaring high together as they make and create art is a privilege. This exhibition serves as a reminder that “las raíces jovenes of tomorrow” will be guiding us into the next chapters of our America soon. As our roots come from a tree, Isabel Allende encourages us to “Accept the children the way we accept trees—with gratitude, because they are a blessing—but do not have expectations or desires. You don’t expect trees to change, you love them as they are.” We welcome you to enjoy and savor the artworks by our young artists!