I AM: Reflections on Identity Through Visual Communications and Writing

A CASE STUDY

A residency that became a community’s answer to being named something it was not.

 

Overview

As a Nina Tesla Ballen Visiting Professor at New Mexico Highlands University, I lectured and led workshops with students across writing, visual art, graphic design, and video — work that culminated in a curated exhibition I also installed: I AM: Reflections on Identity Through Visual Communications and Writing. The work responded directly to the political rhetoric of the moment — language that cast immigrants as criminals, rapists, and drug dealers.

Rather than argue, the show let people speak for themselves through a simple, powerful frame: who they are (I AM) and who they are not (I AM NOT). The result wove writing, spoken voice, video, and graphic design into a single installation — a collective, multidisciplinary portrait that countered a headline with humanity.

“I AM... is a testament to the power of self, identity, and voice””
— Aldrena Hicks

PROJECT GOALS

  • Translate a charged national conversation into a personal, human-centered exhibition

  • Create space for students across disciplines to respond in their own mediums and voices

  • Curate a cohesive installation from work as varied as writing, video, audio, and design

  • Deliver a finished, public-facing show within a two-week residency window

ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES

Visiting Scholar, Workshop Lead, Curator, and Installation Lead, responsible for:

Lecturing and leading workshops with students across disciplines that generated the work featured in the exhibition

  • Guiding students toward a shared, resonant theme and helping them develop their pieces

  • Shaping the I AM / I AM NOT curatorial framework that unified the work

  • Curating which pieces appeared and how they spoke to one another

  • Directing the physical installation — sequencing, flow, and the integration of text, voice, video, and visual work

  • Bringing a multidisciplinary body of work into one coherent experience for the audience

Creative Direction & Curatorial Notes

Framework: The binary of I AM and I AM NOT gave the show its spine — affirmation set against the labels being rejected

  • Multidisciplinary integration: Written word, spoken/recorded voice, video, and graphic design were curated to work together rather than compete

  • Tone: Direct and human — the installation prioritized individual voice over polemic

  • Experience: Sequenced so the audience moved through identity and refutation as a single arc

CHALLENGES & SOLUTIONS

  • A two-week timeline: Built a fast, clear process so students could conceive, produce, and install within the residency

  • Wildly different mediums: Curated for through-line and contrast, letting variety become a strength rather than a distraction

  • A sensitive subject: Centered the participants' own words and presence, keeping the work personal rather than abstract

Results & Legacy

  • Delivered a complete, public exhibition within the residency

  • Gave students across disciplines a curated platform to respond to the cultural moment in their own voices

  • Demonstrated curation and installation leadership across writing, audio, video, and visual art

The TAKEAWAY

Identity is inseparable from the work we make. Helping these students tell their own stories was transformational for me — as an artist, an educator, and a designer — and the exhibition stands as a testament to the power of voice. I AM was curation as response: taking a phrase meant to diminish people and handing it back to them as a way to speak. It's the work I'm proudest of: collaborative, multidisciplinary, and rooted in giving artists a room to be heard.

The works shown were created by New Mexico Highlands University students during the 2018 residency workshops I led. I'm honored to have been part of their making. If you're one of these artists and would like to be credited by name — or would prefer your work removed — please reach out at hello@aldrena.com.

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