Protests, artistic traditions and shrilling violence all exposed the diverse and profound social realities of Latin America in this year’s 2015 Sin Fronteras Film Festival. The Student Organization for Latin American Studies organized the free event, which included nine films that came from Mexico, Guatemala, Colombia, Peru, Chile, Brazil and California.
In effort to promote cultural exchange, UNM’s Continuing Education department in collaboration with the Raindrop Foundation hosted the Whirling Dervishes of Rumi with Sufi music Friday evening. The Sema Ritual, a seven-century-old tradition inspired by the poetry of Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi, is an essential part of the Sufi branch of Islam.
It is an indispensable essence for communities and a valuable resource for the economy, but most of all, water is life. “Agua es Vida: Acequias in Northern New Mexico,” currently featured at the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, highlights a hydro-social cycle that has come to embody New Mexican heritage among the farming community.
Chicanismo at UNM is taking a definitive step toward the integration of heritage, identity and communal support through their efforts to create a department for the Chicano Studies Program. The CSP will soon know whether its request for departmentalization will be granted during the campus-wide faculty senate vote Jan. 27. CSP Director Irene Vasquez said that the creation of such a department will provide a structure and level of authority that the program currently lacks.
A watchful eye and steady hand brings the human figure to life through intuitive lines, values and colors produced on the artist’s medium. As a part of its adult art courses, the Harwood Art Center hosts weekly open-drawing sessions with a live nude model to promote artistic learning through in-person observation of the human body. Julia Mandeville, chief programs officer for the center, said she hopes the open-draw sessions will help artists and models feel more accepting of the human body.
A new student group at UNM seeks to create a network for soon-to-be building industry entrepreneurs Lobo Builders is branching out to a diverse student resource in order to build upon their goals and visions of success in business. Mercedes Morton, secretary and treasurer for the Lobo Builders, said the name might confuse people.
For more than 18 years the Dropkick Murphys have composed and rattled audiences with their strong lyrics layered over a hybrid genre of Celtic punk. Despite the jovial sound of bagpipes, punk riffs and spirited chanting, the songs carry profound meanings that relate to the harsh realities of life. As Matt Kelly, drummer for the Murphys, puts it, “It is the dichotomy of Irish folk music.” The Murphys’ Celtic Punk Invasion tour is well on its way, invading North America, Latin America and Europe, and little ol’ Albuquerque has not been spared. The band will play at 8 p.m. today at the Sunshine Theatre with Blood or Whiskey and Bryan McPherson. Here is a Q&A session with Kelly on the band’s experiences and directives through the years:
The spark of a passionate fire has been lit, and it yearns to ignite interest, emotion and cultural understanding through the power of music.
It is the synchronization of vocals paired with the strum of guitar strings and the beat of a cajón, highlighted by the sharp yet measured tune of the brass that creates a Latin sound. Local music group Sol de La Noche embodies this very sound. The quintet is a Latin music combo composed of UNM students pursuing degrees in the College of Fine Arts. Senior music major Diego Manrique said he began the project independently with the prospect of growing artistically.
Some may call it urban sprawl; others, urban development. But in Albuquerque there is a particular concept at the root of the growth of the city: social inclusion in community development. Urban ABQ is an online community discussion forum tackling the question of Albuquerque’s future. The forum created an online venue that publishes information and gives Albuquerque residents a voice in the development of their environment, including the UNM area. Urban planner Timothy Trujillo, founder of Urban ABQ, said he emphasizes the importance of considering the community in design plans for the city. There is rich cultural history in Albuquerque, and the integration of those concepts is imperative to the design and function of a growing community, he said.
Solutions by The State News
