Arts Exhibition depicts Latino immigrants' journeys
| Exhibition depicts Latino immigrants' journeys |
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| Monday, May 12, 2008 | |
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In 2007, artist Susan Harbage Page explored the U.S.-Mexican Border, photographing possessions left behind by people who attempted to cross the Texas border from Mexico. An exhibition of her photographs, “Longing: Personal Effects from the Border,” is on view through May 28 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The free display is open from 2 p.m. until 4:30 p.m. Thursdays in the Love House and Hutchins Forum at 410 E. Franklin St. The location is home to UNC’s Center for the Study of the American South, sponsor of the exhibit. Page will be at the exhibit to greet visitors from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. May 20.
“The visualization of their travels led me to understand that the journey was important, long and arduous, and one with many stops along the way,” said Page. “I had often thought of the U.S.-Mexican border as the finish line, but this experience made me think of it as just one step in a long process and led me to go see the border and experience it for myself.” After crossing the Rio Grande River, migrants quickly change from wet clothes into dry ones, then blend with the population, she said – or they are stopped by the police and asked to empty their pockets of everything nonessential. Abandoned personal items – toothbrushes, wallets, photographs, clothing and combs – become symbols not only of a culture, but also of the homes that are left behind as migrants pass into the United States.Page’s photography is included in the collections of numerous museums and galleries and has been viewed in more than 100 exhibitions throughout the world. Center for the Study of the American South Web site: http://uncsouth.org/ Center for the Study of the American South contact: Lisa Eveleigh, (919) 962-0506, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it News Services contact: LJ Toler, (919) 962-8589 |
