All Ages, ADA Accessible

Summit County has always had a rich immigrant community whose contributions to the social fabric of this place have been extraordinary and indispensable. For this exhibition, Lo que La Tierra Abraza / What the Land Embraces, Artist Juan Fuentes is working with local immigrant communities to explore their unique stories through the medium of photography. The idea is to spotlight the lives of many incredible individuals who often feel unseen and unheard. Working closely with the team at Mountain Dreamers—a local immigrant advocacy nonprofit based in Frisco, Colorado—Juan will work with community members to create artwork for his exhibition. In addition, this presentation will include immersive installations of the artist’s own work, inspired by his experience working with our immigrant communities. What will result is a multimedia exhibition that includes wheat pasting, fine art photography, video, found objects and archives to detail the lives of some of the families of migrants that decided to make the beautiful mountains of Colorado their home.  

Through photography, Fuentes examines the visual and emotional artifacts of memory, erasure and family by creating records that affirm and center marginalized communities. More recently, the Artist has focused his personal work on his own family’s story of migration from Mexico to the U.S., not only looking at the nuances that make the immigrant experience unique but also leaning into the more ubiquitous visual symbols that make migrants across the globe interconnected. According to Fuentes “it seems like no matter where you go in the United States, you can always count on migrants having a presence.”  

Over the last few years, Fuentes has expanded his practice to working with immigrant communities across Colorado. Informed by his background as an educator, the Artist strives to illustrate “the complexity of the immigrant experience where they live in two worlds at the same time.” Through this work, Fuentes also explores notions of belonging—a feeling that is still alien to many within our immigrant communities. “Juan Fuentes approaches each of these community projects from his uncompromising desire for true authentic connection. He takes the time to get to know the individuals, to truly understand their hopes, dreams and accomplishments, but also the challenges they face. He endeavors to build trust, but more importantly, he is committed to building lasting relationships that go beyond the opening of an exhibition” says exhibition curator, Jill Desmond. 

In the words of the Artist, “I would like to shine a bright and resilient light on the community of migrants that make Summit County a better place. From homelife to work environment, to leisure and recreational time spent on the mountains.”