The Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art will be celebrating the life of Ana Mendieta with an evening of performances inspired by two films from her Silueta and Rupestrian Sculpture series on July 15. 

Ana Mendieta (November 18, 1948 – September 8, 1985) was a Cuban-American performance artist, sculptor, painter and video artist who is best known for her "earth-body" artwork. Born in Havana, Mendieta left for the United States in 1961. In the course of her career, Mendieta created work in Cuba, Mexico, Italy, and the United States. Her work was somewhat autobiographical, drawing from her history of being displaced from her native Cuba, and focused on themes including feminism, violence, life, death, identity, place and belonging. Her works are generally associated with the four basic elements of nature. In 1983, Mendieta was awarded the Rome Prize by the American Academy in Rome.

Five local performers - Adriana Chavez, Yasmina Chavez, Clarice Tara Cuda, Amanda Guardado, and Javier Sanchez - will explore ideas centered around migration, loss, self-discovery, and the physicality of belonging. The night will be lead by fellow performance artist, Brent Holmes. You're invited to watch the performances and consider your own experiences of being in the world.

In Motion will take place at the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art at 6:30 pm on Friday, July 15, 2022. Entry is free. Parking on the UNLV campus will be free after 1 pm. Wearing masks indoors is recommended. This event will not be suitable for all ages as some of the performances will include adult themes.

This event has been organized with support from the Art Bridges Foundation.


PERFORMERS

Adriana Chavez is a Las Vegas-based artist whose practice incorporates theatre, mask making, mask performance, collage, assemblage, movement, and sculptural installation. They have performed in venues throughout the United States, including Dell’arte Company (Blue Lake, CA), Elke Rindfleisch Dance (NYC), and the NYC Clown Theater Festival, and Naked Empire Bouffon Company (San Francisco/Boston). In June 2022 they represented Las Vegas in the inaugural Live in America Festival hosted by The Momentary (AR).

Yasmina Chavez is a time-based media artist, curator, teacher, and award-winning photojournalist based in Las Vegas. She received her MFA in Electronic Integrated Arts from Alfred University (NY) in 2016. Chavez has exhibited nationally and internationally and has been a featured artist in various media and performance based festivals including the Bullfrog Biennial (NV), Vibrant Digit (Shenyang, China), the Life Is Beautiful Festival (NV), and the Off the Strip New Genres Festival (NV). Recently she unveiled Emergent, a public sculpture created in collaboration with Javier Sanchez.

Clarice Tara Cuda is a multidisciplinary artist who uses drawing, painting, sculpture, installation, and performance to blur the boundaries of art and experience. She received her BFA from UNLV in 2017. Her works have been performed and exhibited in venues throughout Las Vegas, including Sin City Gallery, Recycled Propaganda, Core Contemporary, and the Life is Beautiful Festival. In 2018 she performed at Art Basel Miami Beach (FL) in collaboration with fellow Las Vegas artist Amanda Keating.

Amanda Guardado (@is a Las Vegas-based Cuban-American actor with a BFA from UNLV’s Department of Theater. She has appeared in numerous productions throughout the city including Nevada Conservatory Theatre’s Blood Wedding, The Asylum Theatre’s Scherzo (Dialogue with a Statue), and Majestic Repertory Theatre’s Our Town and Empanada Loca. In 2020 she took part in Traces of Us, an experimental Ana Mendieta-themed performance project supported by Pervasive Media Studio (Bristol, UK).

Originally from Mexico City, Mexico, Javier Sanchez  is a multidisciplinary artist based in Las Vegas. His work asks viewers to negotiate between perceptions shaped by mass media and the inherent authenticity of the artist. Sanchez received a MFA in 2017 from SUNY, Buffalo. His work has been featured locally at the Government Center Rotunda Gallery, Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art, the Life Is Beautiful Festival, and other venues. Nationally, his work has been exhibited at the Torrance Art Museum (CA), Buffalo Art Studios (NY), Big Orbit Gallery (TX), and CASP Studio 1 (TX). 

More info: Barrick Museum