Description

The Harwood Museum of Art (HMA) will organize “Unearthing Futures/Desenterrando Futuros,” a major exhibition of contemporary earthen artworks by regional, national, and international artists who celebrate unfired earth as a democratic building material and explore themes of cultural identity, Indigenous knowledges, and environmental stewardship. Opening in 2026, “Unearthing Futures” will be presented at HMA and at outdoor sites along a regional route, where art will be in dialogue with historic earthen buildings and the natural environment. Organized by a curatorial and advisory collective including artists Ronald Rael, Joanna Keane Lopez, and rafa esparza, and Native and Hispano adobe experts, the project will offer perspectives on border politics, immigration, and Indigenous rights, and will foreground the possibilities of adobe in  sustainable construction, energy efficiency, carbon sequestration, economic empowerment, and cultural continuity. The grant will support the work of project participants, Indigenous and Hispanx/Latinx/Chicanx consultants, a publication, and public programming.