Read the salt 16 publication here.
Arleene Correa Valencia is an emerging contemporary artist interested in migration, family, and the visibility/invisibility of undocumented people in the United States. Born in Michoacán, Mexico, Correa Valencia fled with her family to the United States at age three and grew up in Napa Valley. The prolonged experience of separation when her father left to find work made a profound impact on Correa Valencia’s childhood and outlook. Her artistic practice continues to explore the grief, anxieties, and fears of repeated separation alongside the joys of reunited life together.
salt 16: Arleene Correa Valencia features a new series of portraits that capture the complex experience of migration across the Mexico-United States border. The figures are embroidered and painted on handmade Amate, a traditional paper made with tree bark by expert artists and collaborators in Mexico. Each portrait includes reflective fabrics and discarded clothing that closely mimic original family photographs, stitching together the story of Correa Valencia’s family over the past three generations.
This exhibition is accompanied by a publication with a featured essay by Dr. María del Mar González-González, Assistant Professor of Art History at Weber State University.
salt 16 is funded in part by Stephanie and Tim Harpst and The Joseph and Evelyn Rosenblatt Enrichment Fund.