The Arizona Humanities Council
presents
9500 Liberty
with filmmakers Annabel Park & Eric Byler
6:00-8:00 pm
Arizona Historical Society Museum
1300 N. College Avenue
Tempe, AZ 85281
FREE & Open to the Public
Co-hosted with
9500 Liberty is a riveting documentary film about Prince William County, Virginia which became ground zero in July 2007 for America's explosive battle over immigration policy when elected officials adopted a law requiring police officers to question anyone they thought was "probably" undocumented.
The program opens with two videos created by ASU graduate students in the School of Art. "Project Elote Blanco" by Matthew Garcia and "Historias en la Camioneta" by M. Jenea Sanchez shares the experiences of Mexican Americans and Mexican migrants in Arizona.
"Project Elote Blanco" traces an artist's explorations in how maize-based food practice, rooted in the southwestern United States, demonstrates the persistence of a maize-based culture across geopolitical borders. The project began as a typographic mural on a storage trailer from which white maize is sold. Situated on a vacant lot in an Arizona city, the mural has made an aesthetic contribution to the site and has contributed to a community exchange of place, pride and visual culture.
"Historias en la Camioneta" records the artist's experience on a shuttle van traveling to and from Agua Prieta, Sonora, and Phoenix, Arizona. Her fellow passengers reveal their perspectives and personal narratives, against the backdrop of the desert landscape. The "tellings" in the shuttle exist for a fixed time as invisible traces of an era, lost in the passing landscape and never again acknowledged.
This evening presentation is also part of a series of "open" classes forming part of Art and Community, ART 598/494 taught by Gregory Sale. The course explores community-based projects, social art practice, and other critical theories and conventions that engage art and community.
