AN ARTIST’S DUTY

An Artist’s Duty is a bold and timely group exhibition amplifying voices of historically excluded artists from the region, produced by the xikanx collective. Running from Saturday, August 2 through September 26, 2025, this exhibit is inspired by Nina Simone’s declaration that “an artist’s duty is to reflect the times” in which we live.

The exhibition features around 100 artists and performers whose work confronts the current political climate–ICE raids and abductions, ecological collapse, dismantling of the Education Department, attacks on freedom of expression, regression of civil rights, economic instability, and rise of U.S. isolationism and authoritarianism.

Through visual art, installation, performance, and storytelling, An Artist’s Duty is coming together through the xikanx collective– led and curated by Monica Hernandez and Alejandra Ruiz. Monica is an interdisciplinary artivist, curator, and cultural strategist rooted in San Diego’s borderlands. She is co-founder of The Front Arte y Cultura and brings decades of experience working at the intersection of art, advocacy, and community empowerment, with deep ties to grassroots networks. Alejandra Ruiz is an emerging multimedia artist who has curated exhibitions on both sides of the border and is currently an Arts & Culture Coordinator for The Front Arte y Cultura.

An Artist’s Duty features artists from the Emo Brown Art Dept, the Xoque Art in Motion collective, Art Through the Glass (ATTG), Cr34tive Gatherings, the Centro Cultural de la Raza, Proyecto Coyote, and SubCultura Curation, along with an impressive list of individual artists, such as Marcos Erre Ramírez, Einar & James de la Torre, and Pedro Rios, among others.

The opening reception will have performances by Nicole McFly and Ramel Wallace, as well as spoken word and a performance protest developed by Chile’s La Tesis in collaboration with the Centro Cultural de la Raza. ATTG will also be hosting a free artmaking activity.

This exhibition takes on even greater urgency given the current anti-immigrant climate in San Diego and across the nation. An Artist’s Duty is not just a show—it is intentionally creating a safe space for truth-telling, resistance, collective healing, and for community-building. It is bringing together the voices of San Diego’s most marginalized and impacted communities, and it is doing so with intention, presence, hope, and art to shape and shift our current atmosphere. Follow @xicanxcollective to learn more.

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