Flow States—LA TRIENAL 2024

El Museo del Barrio presents Flow States—LA TRIENAL 2024, the museum’s second large-scale survey of Latinx contemporary art. Organized by El Museo del Barrio’s chief curator Rodrigo Moura, curator Susanna V. Temkin, and guest curator María Elena Ortiz, the exhibition will feature 33 participating artists working across the United States, Puerto Rico, and—for the first time—extending into new geographies that reflect the complexities of diasporic flows, with artists based in the Americas, the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia. 

Emphasizing plurality and a sense of movement, the exhibition's title, Flow States, borrows from the psychology of creative focus and the fluidity of geographic boundaries and cultural exchanges. As such, the phrase reflects the ever-changing paths of Latinx artistic diasporas that inform the exhibition. Participating artists share interests in transformation, hybrid belongings, collective memories, porosities of landscape, and material exchanges. These threads come together against a background of displacements and migrations that continue to transform our local and global ecosystems.

Throughout the exhibition, conversations between artworks reflect the solidarities and frictions that emerge when different populations and diasporic communities come into contact with one another. Emphasizing the exhibition’s themes of plurality and multiplicity, works on view encompass a wide variety of media, ranging from paintings and textiles to social practice and participatory installation. Most participating artists will present new work for the first time. Additionally, Flow States will feature 10 projects specially commissioned for the exhibition by artists Hellen Ascoli, Liz Cohen, Tony Cruz Pabón, Koyoltzintli, Mark Menjívar, Carlos Reyes, Ser Serpas, Chaveli Sifre, Cosmo Whyte, and Joe Zaldivar. In addition to the commissions, many participating artists will debut new artworks specially created for Flow States.

“Flow States—La Trienal 2024 presents itself as a summit in which the artworks reflect affinities and solidarities, as well as distinct perspectives and individualized points of departure. Together, they reflect our complex cultural geographies and offer strategies for resistance and diverse imaginations for the future,” say exhibition curators Rodrigo Moura, Susanna V. Temkin and Maria Elena Ortíz.

“Following the success of ESTAMOS BIEN—LA TRIENAL 20/21, we are thrilled to present the second edition of this major Latinx art survey with Flow States—La Trienal 2024. El Museo del Barrio is an institution that has the responsibility to promote and support urgent conversations about Latinx production in the United States and beyond, and we are proud to provide a platform that champions Latinx art,” adds Patrick Charpenel, executive director of El Museo del Barrio.

Participating artists
Carmen Argote b. 1981, Guadalajara, Mexico; lives and works in Los Angeles, California / Hellen Ascoli b. 1984, Guatemala City, Guatemala; lives and works in Baltimore, Maryland / Esteban Cabeza de Baca b. 1985, San Ysidro, California; lives and works between the US Southwest and Queens, New York / Widline Cadet b. 1992, Pétion-Ville, Ayiti; lives and works in Los Angeles, California / Liz Cohen b. 1973, Phoenix, Arizona; lives and works in Phoenix, Arizona / Tony Cruz Pabón b. 1977, Vega Alta, Puerto Rico; lives and works in San Juan, Puerto Rico / Lance De Los Reyes b.1977, Houston, Texas; d. 2021 New York, New York / Christina Fernandez b. 1965, Los Angeles, California; lives and works in Los Angeles, California / Verónica Gaona b. 1994, Brownsville, Texas; lives and works in Houston, Texas / Roberto Gil de Montes b. 1950, Guadalajara, Mexico; lives and works in La Peñita de Jaltemba, Mexico / Maria A. Guzmán Capron b. 1981, Milan, Italy; lives and works in Oakland, California / Madeline Jiménez Santil b. 1986, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; lives and works in Mexico City, Mexico, and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic / Caroline Kent b. 1975, Sterling, Illinois; lives and works in Chicago, Illinois / Koyoltzintli b. 1983, New York, New York; lives and works in New York, New York / Anina Major b. 1981, Nassau, Bahamas; lives and works in New York, New York / Mario Martinez b. 1953, Penjamo, Scottsdale, Arizona; lives and works in Brooklyn, New York / Mark Menjívar b. 1980, Fairfax County, Virginia; lives and works in San Antonio, Texas / Karyn Olivier b. 1968, Trinidad and Tobago; lives and works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania / Alina Perez b. 1995, Miami, Florida; lives and works in New York, New York / Carlos Reyes b. 1977, Chicago, Illinois; lives and works in New York, New York, and Caguas, Puerto Rico / Gadiel Rivera Herrera b. 1963, San Juan, Puerto Rico; lives and works in San Juan, Puerto Rico / Ruben Ulises Rodriguez Montoya b. 1989, Parral, Mexico; nomad / Norberto Roldan b. 1953, Roxas City, Philippines; lives and works in Roxas City, Philippines / Sarah Rosalena b. 1982, Los Angeles, California; lives and works in Los Angeles, California / Ser Serpas b. 1995, Los Angeles, California; lives and works in Brooklyn, New York / Chaveli Sifre b. 1987, Würzburg, Germany; lives and works in Berlin, Germany / Kathia St. Hilaire b. 1995, Palm Beach, Florida; lives and works in Brooklyn, New York / Studio Lenca b. 1986, La Paz, El Salvador; lives and works in Margate, England / Magdalena Suarez Frimkess b. 1929, Caracas, Venezuela; lives and works in Venice, California / Sarita Westrup b. 1989, Edinburg, Texas; lives and works in Dallas, Texas, and Penland, North Carolina / Alberta Whittle b. 1980, Bridgetown, Barbados; lives and works in Glasgow, Scotland / Cosmo Whyte b. 1982, St. Andrews, Jamaica; lives and works in Los Angeles, California / Joe Zaldivar b. 1990, Rosemead, California; lives and works in Los Angeles, California

Credits
Flow States—La Trienal 2024 is made possible by the Jacques and Natasha Gelman Foundation. Leadership support is provided by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund. Major support is provided by the National Endowment for the Arts and Tony Bechara. Generous funding is provided by the Mex-Am Cultural Foundation and the Trienal Council: Patrick Collins, Virginia Cowles Schroth, Agnes Gund, María Eugenia Maury, Ramiro Ortiz Mayorga, Kunal Kishore Shah, Monica Vidal and Joseph Sherman. Additional support is provided by Marilyn Pearl Loesberg, Javier Lumbreras, Isabel and Julio Nazario, Robert and Encarnita Quinlan, and Tracey and Phillip Riese. Public support is provided by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. 

About El Museo del Barrio
El Museo del Barrio is the nation’s leading Latinx and Latin American cultural institution. The Museum welcomes visitors of all backgrounds to discover the artistic landscape of these communities through its extensive Permanent Collection, varied exhibitions and publications, bilingual public programs, educational activities, festivals, and special events.

The Museum is located at 1230 Fifth Avenue at 104th Street in New York City. The Museum is open Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 11am–5pm. Pay-what-you-wish. For more information, please visit elmuseo.org.

Press contacts
Pamela H. Hower: Phhower [at] elmuseo.org / Alexxa Gotthardt: Alexxa [​at​] suttoncomms.com.