VISUAL ARTS + MUSEUMS

Beginning October 22, Spacetaker will host Texas Red Road Project, an exhibition of photography by artist Monica Villarreal, as a part of its new ARC Exhibition series.

Villarreal’s Texas Red Road Project features the culture and traditions of indigenous Native Americans in Texas today. This photo project documents the 1st Annual “Sacred Spring Powwow” in San Marcus and the Chiahui Show in Houston, among others. Also a traditional Aztec dancer, Villarreal aims to capture on film the lifestyles and traditions of those Texans of Navajo, Apache, Lakota, Mexica, and Chichimeca ancestry and explore the relative absence of the Native American influence in Houston’s art establishment.

“People have been practicing indigenous ways of living in Texas for many generations and they will continue,” says Villarreal. “One of my goals, through capturing and exhibiting some of these moments of Texas Native American tradition, is to reveal a culturally rich and fascinating side of Texas that is largely unknown to the general public.”

The Opening Reception for Texas Red Road Project is Friday, October 22 from 6 to 8 p.m. and the exhibition will be up at Spacetaker’s ARC Gallery through November 13, 2010.

About the Artist:
Monica Villarreal is a Texas based freelance photographer and graphic designer with Unidos Design. She received her BA Degree in Entrepreneurship from the University of Houston. A native Houstonian, of Mexican decent, she has dedicated 5 years to learning the dance and ceremonies of the indigenous Aztec people. Her photography consists of digital and 35 mm prints in color, sepia tone, and black and white. Through photography she’s driven by her passion to reveal the beautiful splendor of Southern and Northern Native American culture.

Her work has been showcased at various events and places throughout Houston most notably NASA, Houston Institute for Culture, FotoFest Houston, The East End Gallery, and Last Organic Outpost. Presently, she is in the process of earning an MA in Humanities with a concentration in Digital Studies from the University of Houston Clear Lake. Villarreal is a recipient of an Individual Artist Grant Award, funded by the City of Houston through the Houston Arts Alliance.

About Spacetaker:
Spacetaker is a 501(c)3 professional organization and Artist Resource Center located in Houston’s First Ward whose mission it to provide artists and small non-profits access to economic development, continuing education, and networking opportunities to support their professional growth.