WATSONVILLE—Pajaro Valley Arts has officially opened its newest exhibit, “Campesinos: Workers of the Land,” to view virtually on its website during shelter-in-place.
The exhibit, curated by Gabriel J. Medina and Judy Stabile, celebrates the contributions of agricultural farmworkers, and has been in the works since late 2019. Watsonville Film Festival (WFF) Executive Director Consuelo Alba had been looking for a venue to show the work of two artists who were to be highlighted at the festival, which was planned for early March.
As farmworkers were the central theme for both the artists, the organizations decided to team up to expand the collaboration into a full-blown exhibit.
“This exhibit was conceived to honor the dignity of… agricultural workers and farmers,” a PV Arts spokesperson said. “We asked artists to create and bring us work that represents what they see, feel and believe as they pass by our fields everyday. We asked for artwork that represents the issues of dignity, labor, workers’ rights, immigration, and the duality of every day living for migrant workers. We received incredibly personal, visual and audio stories that celebrate the lives and contributions of our families and community of agricultural workers.”
After shelter-in-place orders went into effect and the film festival was canceled, PV Arts organizers began working on bringing “Campesinos” online for guests to experience.
“Campesinos: Workers of the Land” can be viewed at pvarts.org. As soon as the shelter-in-place order is lifted, the gallery hopes to open for the remainder of the exhibit, which closes Aug. 2.
