As part of its continuing programming supported by the Mellon Foundation’s Humanities in Place Grant, the River Pierce Foundation presents Soy el Rio, an Exhibition and Performance by Matamoros-based artist Javier Dragustinovis on Saturday, December 20, from 12:30-6:00 p.m. at the Trevino-Uribe Fort in San Ygnacio.
Dragustinovis is a multidisciplinary artist and curator at Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Tamaulipas (MACT) in Matamoros, Mexico. His work addresses themes of migration, labor, and community collaboration, and has been exhibited at spaces including Shedhalle Zurich and La Cápsula in Switzerland; the National Museum of World Cultures; the Museum of Contemporary Art of Tamaulipas in Mexico; the Hyde Park Art Center; the San Benito Cultural Heritage Museum, and the International Museum of Art and Science in McAllen.
He directed the films A Par del Río (2020) and An Architecture for the North (2022). He co-authored the book I Am More Than My Hands: The Different Worlds of Women in the Maquiladora (Friedrich Ebert Foundation, 2001).
His exhibit in San Ygnacio will include drawing, photography, installation, video, and interactive performance. The event will also feature a free screening of Michael Tracy’s documentary Culture, Water, and Money: The Passion of the Frontier (1997). The screening will be followed by a panel discussion featuring Dragustinovis and Trevino-Uribe Fort architectural conservator Frank Briscoe.
An interactive performance by Dragustinovis will take place directly after the panel discussion. Dragustinovis will lead participants in a procession to the river where the performance will take place. An artist mixer will take place following the performance. The event is free and open to the public and is supported by the Mellon Foundation. For more information, please visit riverpierce.org or call (956) 765-5784
