Mexico City-based Luisa Salas, better known by her Instagram handle @holalou, is a graphic artist and muralist whose bold minimalism exemplifies the abundant energy of Mexico City’s art scene—a place saturated with colorful design, vibrant fashion, renowned galleries, and storied architecture. A native of Durango, Salas had been living in the Yucatan peninsula before she moved to Mexico City two years ago to be closer to the robust art community. In the midst of her recent career wins—including an artist residency with Nike and a collaboration with Spotify— transitioning to an even busier life has been, in her words, “pretty wild.” 

To set aside days for herself in this frenzy takes some savvy, but Salas still finds time to explore and experience CDMX. Here’s what she likes to do on her ideal weekend in this buzzing metropolis—from the must-try food vendors to her favorite hotel spa appointment.

On the weekends, you can find Salas people-watching in Parque Mexico.

Cathyrose Melloan /Alamy

Roma Norte street food and art galleries

On a Saturday morning, Salas, a vegetarian, looks to street food for breakfast. Savory, toasted quesadillas are a favorite and found on most street corners across the city. 

“That’s something you can’t miss,” she says. “They are a great way to try some veggies that maybe you’ve never heard of.”

A few ideas? A jet-black corn fungus called huitlacoche, or perhaps squash flowers with stringy Oaxacan cheese. Jenny’s Quesadillas, a well-known stand in Roma Norte, is a great spot to find this snack.

After breakfast, Salas recommends heading to MOONI Gallery, also in Roma Norte, to scope out emerging Latin American artists, whose work is priced for a range of budgets. “Instead of being a gallery with really white walls and four spare paintings, they have, like, 2,000 paintings” says Salas. The space is laid-back and packed wall-to-wall with local art.

Details

By Litchfield Park

May 29, 2023

Litchfield Park, Arizona, is a small, charming city just 30 minutes west of Phoenix.  It is home to the historic four-star Wigwam Resort and Golf Course.  It is also home to several award-winning annual festivals, including the Litchfield Park Gathering.  The Gathering, which is free and open to the public, is a celebration of indigenous arts and cultures.  This year’s festival will be held on January 13 and 14, 2024.  Now in its 32nd year of production, longtime participants look forward to this festival each year to “gather” and reconnect with family members and friends that they don’t often see.  

More than one hundred Native American artists typically participate in the Litchfield Park Gathering, which is an outdoor street festival held in the center of town.  Several longtime participants including Larry Ashkie, Bob Lansing, Amado Peña, Daniel Ramirez, and Baje Whitethorne Sr. have pieces in museum and gallery collections. Even more are consistently juried into the nation’s most prestigious shows, including the Heard Museum Guild Indian Market and the Santa Fe Indian Market.  

This year festival planners for the Litchfield Park Gathering hope to expand tribal representation and reach. They are seeking a balanced display of artforms and are putting out a call to Native American fine artists and artisans to help them achieve this.  In particular, the planning committee is looking to incorporate more carvers, potters, sculptors, and weavers into the show. This is an exciting opportunity for artists to sell their work to both collectors and consumers. Participating artists will showcase their unique talents and perspectives to the thousands of festival goers who descend upon Litchfield Park every January.  

Festival attendees enjoying the stage entertainment and food options at the Litchfield Park Gathering.

The Litchfield Park Gathering will provide festival patrons with an incredible selection of Native American masterpieces, including beadwork, jewelry, fetishes, kachinas, paintings, pottery, sculptures, and clothing and textiles. Both traditional and contemporary styles of art will be included, helping attendees understand that indigenous creativity comes in many forms and should not be stereotyped. Live artist demonstrations will also serve as teaching tools. These demonstrations enable festival goers to appreciate and interact with the artists and artisans on a personal level. 

Dancing, storytelling, and musical performances will be held on the main stage, as well as in the Cultural Education Area, where audience members can ask questions of the performers.  World champion hoop dancers Tony Duncan and Moontee Sinquah will be among the performers, along with world renowned classical guitarist Gabriel Ayala. In the nearby Children’s Area, children can create complimentary make and take arts and crafts, such as arrowhead necklaces, cornhusk dolls and mini clay pots. Violet Duncan will also hold daily hoop dancing workshops for children. Of course, Native American fare will also be available for purchase in the festival’s food court.

Saginaw Chippewa painter Daniel Ramirez demonstrating his technique in front of his booth at the Litchfield Park Gathering.

Artists who are interested in applying to the show can do so online at litchfieldpark.gov.  Artists must provide proof of tribal affiliation when they apply, along with three to four images of their recent work.  All artwork must be original creations handcrafted and exhibited by the artist.  Artists who are accepted into the Litchfield Park Gathering will be eligible to enter the juried art competition, if interested.  This special onsite review process will be judged and juried for prizes by an expert panel on Friday, January 12, the afternoon before the festival. Judging will take place at the Wigwam Resort, which is right across from the festival grounds.  Winners will be notified when they retrieve their pieces that evening. Winners will also be announced and showcased during the festival.  

For additional information about the Litchfield Park Gathering, including the artist application and review process, please call the City of Litchfield Park’s Special Events Department at 623-935-9040 or visit litchfieldpark.gov.  This festival is supported in part by the Arizona Commission on the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, and by tourism dollars received through the Arizona Office of Tourism.

In less than two months, the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation will be ground zero for the 9th annual RedCan invitational graffiti jam, the first and only event of its kind in Indian Country. RedCan is scheduled for July 5-8, 2023, and is open to the public.

The Cheyenne River Youth Project announced the names of the 12 featured artists who will paint murals around the Eagle Butte community on July 5-6 and in CRYP’s public Waniyetu Wowapi (Winter Count) Art Park on July 7-8. The grassroots, Native- and woman-led nonprofit organization also unveiled a short film about the RedCan project titled “Changing the Narrative.”

“Five of our 2022 featured artists were Native women, and all five are returning this year,” said Julie Garreau, CRYP’s executive director. “We are excited to amplify their voices, perspectives and gifts through this little film, just as we are honored to welcome them back to Cheyenne River for four more days of creation, connection, cultural exchange, and the healing, transformative power of art.”

Those artists are 179, Lucious, Rezmo, TamiJoy and Yukue. Also part of the Redcan 2023 lineup are East, Cyfi, Hoka, Biafra, Wundr, Lawst and Desi Mundo.

During the four painting days, each artist will work closely with a CRYP Lakota Art Fellow or teen intern. These young Lakota art students will be able to learn new skills and practice new techniques as they assist the artists.

“This mentorship is a vital part of RedCan,” Garreau explained. “Not only does it bring Native and non-Native artists from across the country to our homelands, giving our community members a priceless opportunity to engage with the largest art movement in the history of humankind, it also gives our young people opportunities to explore their identities, share their voices and stories, and grow as artists.”

“I’m excited that even more teens are interested in participating in RedCan this year,” said Wakinyan Chief, CRYP’s art manager. “One of our programs assistant trainees completed several teen internships with us, and he’s heading into his third RedCan. Every couple of weeks, he tells me how much he’s looking forward to this summer’s event.”

Most of the featured artists have participated in multiple RedCans, as well; in fact, some have participated since the inaugural event in 2015. According to Garreau, that has deepened the RedCan experience in ways that she and her staff couldn’t have anticipated in the beginning.

“We’ve seen lifelong friendships develop, and the artists often refer to RedCan as a family,” she said. “That is profoundly moving to all of us at CRYP, because relationships lie at the heart of everything we do. And as we strengthen the bonds between us, we also see beautiful collaborative work develop — particularly between our guest artists, local Cheyenne River artists, and our young art students. It’s such an honor to witness this unfold year after year.”

While the artists paint in the community, CRYP and its volunteers will host youth arts, crafts and recreational activities at dedicated community sites. Then, when the artists move to the art park, the action moves with them.

“In the past, our two days in the art park have included DJ music, Lakota exhibition dancing, field day games, arts activities, hoop-dancing classes, and so much more,” said Jerica Widow, CRYP’s programs director. “It’s a joy to see the kids learning and having fun while family members and guests stroll through the park, enjoy the music and dancing, and watch the artists work.”

Community members also frequently gather at the mural sites in town, and not just the new ones. Garreau noted that, last year, CRYP staff witnessed people stopping at the older murals as well and discussing the details of the artwork with their companions.

“Our community really has embraced RedCan,” she reflected. “Throughout each year, as we drive or walk around town, we see all of this art — literally hundreds of murals since RedCan began — that uplifts us and reflects who we are as Lakota people. It is really powerful.

“For me, it’s a centering point,” she continued. “That’s so important, because the work we do here can be really challenging.”

On Friday and Saturday, July 7-8, CRYP will close each painting day in the art park with a free community meal and special performance on the Waniyetu Wowapi Art Park stage. Cheyenne River Lakota and Crow Creek Dakota rap artist, producer and sound designer Bazille will perform Friday night.

The Wake Singers, an Olgala Lakota rock band comprising cousins Douglas, Michael and Reed Two Bulls, will take the stage on Saturday. And, as always, the Cheyenne River-based Wakinyan Maza drum group will open and close each day of RedCan with a prayer, smudging and drum song for all who wish to participate.

In 2022, acclaimed hoop dancers The Sampson Brothers performed on RedCan’s final evening.
Photo credit Cheyenne River Youth Project.

Featured artists paint at mural sites in the community for RedCan’s first two days, then paint in the art park during the event’s final two days.
Photo credit Cheyenne River Youth Project.

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Camps

ACADEMIC CAMPS: Grace College and Seminary in Winona Lake is offering three camps this summer – visual art, exercise science and engineering. Each camp includes snacks and lunch. Parents are also invited to a section of each camp to see what their child has been working on. Need-based scholarships are available upon application. The full schedule can be found at

www.grace.edu/camps

.

ClassesINVASIVE-PLANT TRAINING: The Northeast Chapter of Indiana Native Plant Society and Little River Wetlands Project are partnering to present a training program on local invasive-plant species. A classroom session is scheduled from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday followed by a hike from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Barn at Eagle Marsh, 6801 Engle Road. Registration is required 24 hours in advance; Email Maraiah at m.russell@lrwp.org or call 260-918-7119.

EventsGOLF OUTING: Fort Wayne Trails will be holding its first-ever golf outing Friday at Brookwood Golf Course. Lunch will be at noon with a shotgun start at 1 p.m. The cost is $100 per golfer or $400 per team. All proceeds will benefit future trail development in Allen County. Teams can register at www.fwtrails.org

MIAMI INDIAN HERITAGE DAYS: The next event is Saturday at the Chief Richardville House, 5705 Bluffton Road, Fort Wayne. Visitors to the Chief Richardville House, recognized as the oldest Native American structure in the Midwest, can learn about the heritage of regional Native American groups. Local artists, performers and presenters will also be featured from 1 to 4 p.m. the first Saturday of the month through November. On Saturday, Erik Vosteen will offer a demonstration, Cookware from Local Clays: Making and Using Replica Native-Style Pottery. Admission each Saturday is $7 for adults and $5 for students and seniors. History Center members and ages 2 and younger are free.

GEORGE R. MATHER LECTURE SERIES: The History Center, 302 E. Berry St., will conclude the 2022-23 George R. Mather Sunday Lecture Series this weekend. “Browne and Hartke: Two Views on the Vietnam War” will be presented by Ray Boomhower and Geoff Paddock. Sunday’s 2 p.m. lecture is free to the public. To attend the lecture virtually, contact the History Center in advance at administration@fwhistorycenter.org

MIDWEST DANCE RETREAT: The Kekionga Convergence will host the Dances of Universal Peace Midwest Dance Retreat from June 30 to July 2 at the Fort Wayne Dance Collective, 437 E. Berry St. The dances blend chant, live music and simple movements into “a living experience of unity, peace, and integration.” Affordable housing is available through the University of Saint Francis for out-of-town participants. Registration is open with early-bird rates until June 9. For more information, contact Liz Monnier, monnierliz@gmail.com or Tammy Silowsky, tsilowsky@hotmail.com.

YOUTH FISHING DERBIES: Free derbies with the following youth categories: ages 2-5, ages 6-10 and ages 11-14; registration begins at 8:30 a.m. Saturday; youth fishing time will be from 9 to 10:30 a.m. with awards at 11 a.m.; event will feature education stations. Advanced registration requested by calling Upper Wabash Interpretive Services at 260-468-2127.

PORCHFEST: Festival featuring live music and a garden tour to celebrate the Williams Woodland Park Neighborhood. 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. with check in at West Suttenfield and Webster streets. Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for kids and ages 5 and younger are free; more information at https://tinyurl.com/5y6hwnmr.

OrganizationsHABITAT FOR HUMANITY: Premier Bank recently donated $5,000 to Habitat for Humanity of Greater Fort Wayne. The money will be used to sponsor the organization’s ReStore Your Passion event, a construction build, and the Habitat golf outing.

TOASTMASTERS: Communication & Leadership Training is hosted by the Bob Leiman Toastmasters Club, a nonprofit educational organization, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on the second and fourth Mondays each month. Meetings are at Ivy Tech Coliseum Campus, 3800 N. Anthony Blvd., in Room CC 1364. Guests are welcomed. For more information, go to 666.toastmastersclubs.org, call 260-437-0117 or email knhood@aol.com.

If you have information you would like considered for Community Update, please submit it at least two weeks before the desired publication date to community@jg.net. All submissions must be via email.

From the archives of the Sault Ste. Marie Public Library:

John Laford was a prominent Sault Ste. Marie artist, who was born in 1955 on an Indigenous reserve in the West Bay area of Manitoulin Island.

Leaving his home at the age of 15, he eventually made his way to Sault Ste. Marie by his early 20s.

He felt that he had been painting for as long as he could remember. He always enjoyed art, design and doodling after he finished school but with no formal training, he was largely self-taught.

Laford travelled throughout Europe, Canada and the United States, studying and learning from various artists along the way.

“I would only paint to get enough money to continue along the way,” he said.

By 1969, Laford began painting full-time. In 1977, at the age of 22, he had his work exhibited at the Centennial Room at the Sault Ste. Marie Public Library. He used his work to show his Ojibway legends and spiritual beliefs. His spiritual beliefs and Ojibway legends were central not just to his artistic career but to his personal life as well.

Laford went on to be a vocal critic of the Children’s Aid Society (CAS).

As a child, he played with a young boy who lived next to him. In a 1978 Sault Star article he explained, it was not until he was 12 that he realized that the boy was his older brother.

When he was one year old, his father died. His mother took his four sisters and two brothers and moved back to her reserve. She did not receive any financial assistance to care for her children and CAS took over.

“CAS saw my mother had too many kids and just took them away,” Laford said. “To me, it seemed they just wanted to scatter the family. I wasn’t adopted into a native family and the Children’s Aid paid for my care but no one ever bothered to tell me about my real parents and brothers and sisters.”

The foster family cared for four of them for a while which he described as very strict but fairly good people which he says helped him.

At the age of 15, he ran away from home with his older brother and travelled to Toronto in an attempt to find their mother.

“I quit school. Things weren’t too good on the reserve. I was drinking a lot,” he said.

When they arrived in Toronto it took them a week to find their mother. He spent three years with her getting to know her and the rest of his family.

“What I’m saying is my opinion, just my own ideas about the things I went through with Children’s Aid. I would have liked to have grown up with my mother, stayed with my real mother, but it didn’t happen that way. You could look at it (CAS) as destroying Indian families but they’re trying to do something good,” he said near the end of the Sault Star article.

Laford and two other Indigenous artists Cecil Youngfox and Peter Migwans formed a group called “Artists of the Northern Sun.” They hoped it would “form the nucleus of the Indian community in Sault Ste. Marie.” 

The three artists created the group around 1977 when Laford moved to Sault Ste. Marie. They planned on organizing events that would bring Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Canadians together. The three wanted to create a higher profile and take on a leadership role in the community.

By 1980 Laford had become a well-established artist in his own right whose work was included in the McMichael Canadian Art Collection. His work had been exhibited in Hamilton, Toronto, and Montreal and in 1980 his work was part of the Manitoulin Island artist’s show at the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM). In 1990 his work was once again featured in Sault Ste. Marie at the Art Gallery of Algoma.

Laford passed away in 2021 at the age of 67. He left a lasting mark and legacy in the

Indigenous community. He used his spirituality and culture’s legends to create works of art that are enjoyed and viewed by Canadians and the world alike.

Each week, the Sault Ste. Marie Public Library and its Archives provide SooToday readers with a glimpse of the city’s past.

Find out more of what the Public Library has to offer at www.ssmpl.ca and look for more “Remember This?” columns here.