National Hispanic Cultural Center welcomes new printmaking exhibition that traces the roots of Mexican culture on both sides of the border

April 26th, 2023

Albuquerque, NM – Following its opening on April 21, the National Hispanic Cultural Center (NHCC) invites you to explore Nexo Entre Raíces / Nexus Between Roots, a new printmaking exhibition that connects artists with Mexican roots on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. 

“Not only is the work in Nexo Entre Raíces stunning, but it also manages to find universal themes that connect across borders,” said NHCC Interim Director Zack Quintero. “As the National Hispanic Cultural Center, I believe our organization is well positioned to tell these cross-cultural stories through art.” 

Organized by artist Marco Sánchez and multidisciplinary scholar Claudia Ley in collaboration with the NHCC Art Museum, the exhibition features a total of 64 prints, 33 artworks exchanged for a print portfolio between the participating artists as well as additional pieces contextualizing the artists’ work. These artworks traverse themes – including culture, tradition, identity, and place – that connect those with Mexican roots across borders. 

“We are absolutely thrilled we had the opportunity to work with Marco and Claudia and that we are able to host this project in the Art Museum at the NHCC,” said Jadira Gurulé, Head Curator and Manager for the NHCC’s Art Museum and Visual Arts Program. “The work is stunning and offers so many opportunities to reflect on the ways culture connects people across time and space. We are also showing a number of these artists’ work for the first in our museum which is always exciting. It’s been a great collaboration.”  

Just like the installation they helped create, both organizers have roots on both sides of the border that inform their work. Ley is a multidisciplinary scholar, social artist, and third-generation jeweler of Chinese-Mexican-American descent from El Paso, Texas. Ley has worked in museum education since 2013, as the education intern at the Stanlee and Gerald Rubin Center for the Visual Arts, the art school coordinator at the El Paso Museum of Art, and the education curator at the Centennial Museum and Chihuahuan Desert Gardens. Ley is the Curator of Education and Outreach at the Rubin Center. Most recently she served as a curatorial and advising consultant for the Smithsonian Latino Center and the National Museum of the American Latino. 

"Nexo Entre Raíces is just a small impression of what we, as Mexicanos and Mexican-Americans, have been able to reap and sow through our love, labor, and integrity; whether it’s in our motherland of Mexico or here in the U.S.A,” Ley said. 

Sánchez was born in Mexico but works in El Paso, Texas. He has worked primarily in the Southwestern United States, but has also participated in residencies throughout Mexico, including Mexico City, Michoacán, Oaxaca, and Querétaro. Sánchez also acts as juror for BIPOC fellowship applicants at Zygote Press in Cleveland. In addition to printmaking, Sánchez is also versed at oil painting, drawing, wood working and mixed media. His studio investigations have covered his relationship with his mentors and peers alike, his cultural background, folklore, and blue-collar laborers. 

“Albuquerque holds such a special place in my heart, not just because of its beautiful scenery and the outstanding printmaking presence it holds,” Sánchez said. “The connections with artists, curators, cultural spaces and creatives in general, are some of the most fruitful and genuine relationships I’ve made in recent years; in and out of my professional career.” 

The exhibition closes on Sunday, Sept. 10 in the NHCC’s Visual Arts Museum. A reception celebrating the exhibition will be held on Friday, July 14. The Museum is open from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. from Tuesday through Sunday, and is free to New Mexico residents on the first Sunday of each month. Visit nhccnm.org/exhibitions to learn more. 

More about the National Hispanic Cultural Center The National Hispanic Cultural Center is dedicated to the preservation, promotion, and advancement of Hispanic culture, arts, and humanities. The NHCC presents mission-related events throughout the year, some produced by its history, literary, performing, and visual arts programs, and others by partnering with external organizations. Events take place at its 20-plus-acre campus, which includes a plaza, an art museum, a historically designated building, a library, and a genealogy center. The NHCC is a division of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs and is further supported by the National Hispanic Cultural Center Foundation.