¡Viva La Causa! Long Live the Cause!: The Art of Change, a new exhibition highlighting the intersections of art and activism, is opening at History Colorado’s Fort Garland Museum & Cultural Center on March 9. Using artwork created at the peak of two social justice movements – the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s and ʼ70s and the Black Lives Matter movement in the early 2020s – ¡Viva La Causa! Long Live the Cause!: The Art of Change explores themes of identity, equality, and courage in the face of injustices. 

“This exhibition reflects the struggles of many who have spoken against social inequities; while celebrating the artists who have documented pivotal moments in history,” said Lucha Martinez de Luna, Associate Curator of Hispano, Chicano, Latino History and Culture. “Artwork displayed in ¡Viva La Causa! helps instill a sense of hope and perseverance in the many who sacrifice and continue to advocate for a just and equitable future.” 

With more than two dozen pieces of art, spanning multiple mediums and materials, ¡Viva La Causa! Long Live the Cause!: The Art of Change features bold declarations, provocative imagery, and striking narratives. Visitors to the exhibition will engage with the legacy of social justice movements in Colorado while also investigating the ways artistic creations reflect and inform the identities of social movements and the people behind those movements. 

“Social justice activism is one of the prominent threads that weaves Colorado into what it is today, and in every generation, artists create works as a form of protest,” Martinez de Luna said. “Through art, activists address the struggle for social justice and equality, encourage social change, and memorialize causes and individuals which have defined the modern world.”  

 

Included in the art displayed in ¡Viva La Causa! are the works of: 

• Internationally acclaimed muralist, painter and sculptor Emanuel Martinez who has created iconic artwork that serves as some of the most famous iconography for the Chicano/a/x rights movement. 
• Jodie Herrera, a painter, muralist, and artivist (artist + activist) who is best known for creating semi-photorealistic oil paintings of remarkable women as well as murals that reflect the social justice issues of the time and space in which they are created. 
• Denver-based photographer Juan Fuentes who has documented the gentrification of Black and Latino neighborhoods in his hometown as well as prominent protests against police brutality, including the George Floyd protests of 2020. 
• Floyd Tunson, a highly regarded artist in the Rocky Mountain region who creates art that explores the realities of racial injustice and systemic racism faced by communities of Color. 

 

¡Viva La Causa! Long Live the Cause!: The Art of Change opened Saturday, March 9, at the Fort Garland Museum & Cultural Center in Fort Garland, Colo. The Fort Garland Museum & Cultural Center is located at 29477 CO-159 and is open daily from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Admission for kids 18 and under is free every day. 

For individuals interested in further exploring ¡Viva La Causa! Long Live the Cause!: The Art of Change, Fort Garland Museum & Cultural Center will hold a panel discussion on Saturday, May 11. Lucha Martinez de Luna, Associate Curator of Hispano, Chicano, Latino History & Culture at History Colorado, will lead this discussion alongside several contributing artists with works in the exhibition.