Celebrating Latino Heritage
¡Extraordinarios! 10 Houston Latinos Who Are Making a Difference —Houston Chronicle
Mari Carmen Ramírez, MFAH | “Born in Puerto Rico, Ramírez has been credited as the first dedicated curator of modern and contemporary Latin American art in a mainstream U.S. museum. She has received national distinctions and was named one of the most influential Hispanics in the U.S. by Time magazine.”
Excursiones: Gonzo247 and Houston’s East End
Moche culture, Nose Ornament Depicting a Vilca Tree Deity, 100–800 AD, gold, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, gift of Alfred C. Glassell, Jr.
Ernesto Neto, SunForceOceanLife (installation view), 2020, crocheted textile and plastic balls, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Museum purchase funded by the Caroline Wiess Law Accessions Endowment Fund. © 2020 Ernesto Neto / photograph by Will Michels
Ellen Lesperance, When all the warheads turn to rust, until our days are done, we’ll hold our mother earth in trust, for children yet to come, 2018, gouache and graphite on tea-stained wove paper; and wool, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Museum purchase funded by Lynne Werner and Kerry Inman at Art + Paper 2019; and the Alvin S. Romansky Prints and Drawings Accessions Endowment Fund.
Teresa Margolles, Lote bravo, 2005, 400 handmade adobe mud bricks made out of soil in which the bodies of murdered women were buried, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Museum purchase funded by the 2007 Latin American Experience Gala and Auction, Mary and Roy Cullen, Sofia Adrogué, P.C. and Sten Gustafson, Celina and Alfredo Brener, Brad and Leslie Bucher, Eduardo and Eugenia Grüneisen, Bruce and Diane Halle, Gonzalo Parodi, and Robert J. Card M.D. and Karol Kreymer in honor of Gilbert Vicario.
Amalia Mesa-Bains, Transparent Migrations, 2001, mirrored armoire, 16 glass leaves, wire armatures, small gauze dress, lace mantilla, assorted crystal miniatures, and shattered safety glass, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Museum purchase funded by the Latin Maecenas. © 2001 Amalia Mesa-Bains
David Taylor, Border Monument No. 1, 2009, inkjet print, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Museum purchase funded by the Caroline Wiess Law Accessions Endowment Fund. © David Taylor
Elia Alba, Hold My Daisy, digital ink, 2019, courtesy of the artist. © Elia Alba
César Augusto Martínez, Bato con Sunglasses, 1984/91, acrylic paint on canvas, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Museum purchase funded by Crowley, Marks & Douglas, and Pablo Alvarado in memory of Froilán and Juan Joaquín Aguirre. © César A. Martínez
Vincent Valdez, Untitled, from the series The Stranger Fruit, 2013, oil on canvas, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Museum purchase funded by the Latin Maecenas. © Vincent Valdez
Latino Heritage | 2021 Highlights
Excursiones: Gonzo247 and Houston’s East End
Houston artist Gonzo247 shares his family history and visits some favorite East End sights. This two-part video tour includes a visit to his studio and Leo Tanguma’s historic mural The Rebirth of Our Nationality. WATCH NOW
History Book Club Mexican American Odyssey
September 8, 1:30 p.m. | Selected for Latino Heritage Month, Mexican American Odyssey: Felix Tijerina, Entrepreneur and Civic Leader, 1905–1965 tells the story of Houston’s Felix Tijerina and how his life reflects trends in Mexican American development. LEARN MORE
Virtual Poetry Reading “Inside Time: Past, Present, Pandemic, Poetry”
September 20, 6:30 p.m. | Writers from Tintero Projects celebrate resilience. Reflecting on loss, strength, heritage, and what endures, they share new works from the pandemic year, plus poetry inspired by ancient Latin American art from the MFAH collections. LEARN MORE
MFAH on the Move: Bilingual Zumba
September 26, 11 a.m. | This special edition of the Museum’s ongoing fitness series salutes the dance and music of Brazil to commemorate the closing day of the exhibition Ernesto Neto: SunForceOceanLife. LEARN MORE
Conversations with Artists: Ellen Lesperance and Teresa Margolles
October 11, 6:30 p.m. | The artists discuss “Collectivity in Art” via Zoom with Latin American art assistant curator Rachel Mohl and prints & drawings curator Dena Woodall. LEARN MORE
X as Intersection: Latinx Artists in Conversation “Art in Uncertain Times”
October 20, 6 p.m. | Recipients of the inaugural U.S. Latinx Artist Fellowship talk with Latin American art curator Mari Carmen Ramírez and El Museo del Barrio chief curator Rodrigo Moura. LEARN MORE
Conversations with Artists: Amalia Mesa-Baines and David Taylor
November 1, 6:30 p.m. | The artists discuss “The U.S./Mexico Border” via Zoom with photography curator Malcolm Daniel and Latin American art curator Mari Carmen Ramírez. LEARN MORE
International Literature Festival Houston
November 4–9 | Casa Cultural de las Américas and the MFAH present an online festival featuring renowned writers from Chile, Cuba, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Puerto Rico, Spain, and Venezuela. LEARN MORE
Conversations with Artists: César Augusto Martínez and Vincent Valdez
November 11, 6:30 p.m. | The artists discuss their work in context of the themes “Border” and “Witness” with Latin American art assistant curator Rachel Mohl. LEARN MORE
Cultural Conversation “Letters on Life in Early Mexico”
Assistant curator Misty Flores and consulting curator Rex Koontz discuss early post-colonial culture in Mexico through the lens of writer and educator Fanny Calderón de la Barca, who was married to Spain’s first envoy to the new country following Mexico’s independence in 1821. WATCH NOW
In the Galleries with the Curators
Latin American art curator Mari Carmen Ramírez and decorative arts, craft & design assistant curator Anna Walker discuss the profoundly moving textile craft traditions of Brazilian artist Ernesto Neto and Colombian artist Olga de Amaral.
All Learning and Interpretation programs at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, receive endowment funds provided by Louise Jarrett Moran Bequest; Caroline Wiess Law; Windgate Foundation; the William Randolph Hearst Foundation; Cyvia and Melvyn Wolff; the National Endowment for the Humanities; the Fondren Foundation; BMC Software, Inc.; the Wallace Foundation; the Neal Myers and Ken Black Children’s Art Fund; Mr. and Mrs. A. L. Ballard; Mr. and Mrs. Charles W. Tate; the Eleanor and Frank Freed Foundation; Virginia and Ira Jackson; the Favrot Fund; CFP Foundation; Neiman Marcus Youth Arts Education; gifts in memory of John Wynne; and gifts in honor of Beth Schneider.
General admission to the MFAH is free on Thursdays, courtesy of Shell Oil Company.
Virtual Learning & Interpretation programs are generously underwritten by the Jerold B. Katz Foundation.
Education programs at Rienzi receive generous funding from the Sterling-Turner Foundation; Alkek and Williams Foundation; Carroll Sterling and Harris Masterson III Endowment; and the Caroline Wiess Law Endowment for Rienzi.
Education programs at Bayou Bend receive generous funding from Sharon G. Dies; Susan Vaughan Foundation; Houston Junior Woman's Club; Mary Lynn and Steve Marks; Bobbie Nau; William A. and Madeline Smith Charitable Trust; and additional generous donors. The education programs also receive endowment income from funds provided by Mr. and Mrs. A. L. Ballard; Mr. and Mrs. Charles W. Tate; and the James William Glanville and Nancy Hart Glanville Endowment.
Wellness Programs at the MFAH are presented by MD Anderson Cancer Center.
The 46th Annual Ruth K. Shartle Lecture Series is made possible by a generous grant from The Brown Foundation, Inc.
The World Faiths Initiative is made possible by a generous grant from Lilly Endowment Inc.
“Ernesto Neto: SunForceOceanLife” is organized by the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.
Major support is provided by Leslie and Brad Bucher.
Additional generous funding is provided by the Vivian L. Smith Foundation.
“Olga de Amaral: To Weave a Rock” is organized by the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and the Cranbrook Art Museum.
Major support is provided by:
Sara and Bill Morgan, in honor of Anna Walker
Additional generous funding is provided by:
Anne Lamkin Kinder
Lenore G. Tawney Foundation
Michael W. Dale
Leatrice and Melvin Eagle
Joan Morgenstern