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By Pat Rodriguez    

RIO GRANDE VALLEY, TEXAS – Calling all artists! 

The UTRGV Center  for Latin American Arts (CLAA) and the College of Fine Arts are inviting student and community artists to submit their artwork for the inaugural RGV x Art for Change 2022 Exhibition, which opens Feb. 1. 

The exhibition will run from Feb. 1 to March 13 and explore the theme of sustainability through the unique lenses of contemporary artists. 

Dr. Katherine Moore McAllen, UTRGV Center for Latin American Arts director and assistant professor of Art History. (Courtesy Photo)

Submitted artwork should help communicate the community’s collective reflection about the state of sustainability in the environment and culture, particularly how it relates to border identity. 

Artwork will be selected based on portrayal of sustainability, border identity and artistic quality themes that focus on solutions showcasing sustainable practices through conceptual or material qualities in both 2D and 3D works. 

“The exhibition aims to bring artitists in our community together to view works, discuss ideas, make connections and reflect on important messages that inform their artistic process,” said Dr. Katherine Moore McAllen, CLAA director and assistant professor of Art History.  

The exhibit is organized by Moore McAllen; Keatan McKeever, Master of Fine Arts student and UTRGV Presidential Research Fellowship Grant recipient, and Tim Gonchoroff, assistant professor for the School of Art and Design and director of the UTRGV Galleries, and is designed to support artists – painters, sculptors, printmakers, digital artists, mixed media artists and writers and poets – at UTRGV, as well as members of the community.   

“The ultimate goal is to support our graduate students like Keatan McKeever in their curatorial efforts to give artists an opportunity to present their current creative works, connect with other artists and receive feedback and support,” Moore McAllen said. 

Ultimately, RGV x Art for Change hopes to bring “a collective reflection to the state of sustainability in the local environment and culture.”

“We want to bring in a focus on border identity, because of the relevance it has for our region and our community,” McKeever said. “Sustainability through the unique lens of border identity can relate to traditional practices in the arts that should be preserved and re-examined, repurposing materials unique to the environment of the border region we live in.” 

• The exhibit will be open from Feb. 1-21 at the University Libraryon the UTRGV Edinburg Campus.  
• It will move to the UTRGV Visual Arts Gallery, located in the Visual Arts Buildingat 2412 S. Closner Blvd. in Edinburg, from Feb 24 - March 13. 

Deadline to submit artwork is Sunday, Jan 23. All works submitted must be original pieces created in the past two years and must explore sustainability and positive change in the arts.

To submit artwork or learn more about the exhibit, email claa@utrgv.edu or RGVxArtforChange@gmail.com or visit www.utrgv.edu/claa. 

In conjunction with the exhibit, a talk and presentation featuring artist and contemporary basket weaver Sarita Westrup, a Rio Grande Valley native, will be held Friday, Feb. 25, at the Visual Arts Gallery. The presentation is open to the university community and the public.