La Cara - Beneath the Mask

A composite image of four faces. Beneath the mask worn by the common stranger exists a reality that multiculturalism, statistics, and census data cannot record—a material existence, a living presence that can only be acknowledged by looking into the eyes of the individual. It is in the shared awareness of each other where community becomes a living thing, a force for understanding and progress. La Cara Latina de Bloomington hopes to plumb the depths of difference while creating an awareness of similarity and recognition. Latinos from all over the globe now live and work in Bloomington, Indiana. They have journeyed from lands such as Mexico, Peru, Puerto Rico, Spain, Cuba, Costa Rica, Brazil, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, and from all four corners of the United States. They have come to realize their own dreams, dreams that likely resonate with you, the viewer.

Latinos have long enriched the community with their diverse cultures and worldviews. But beyond the food, music, language, and art exists the individual, the family, the history. It is this reality which La Cara Latina seeks to glimpse.

The testimonio is a powerful tool through which the photographed subject speaks, tells his or her story, provides a narrative which acts as a window into the life led, the life aspired to. The struggles and victories, the fears and hopes affording a clearer vision of the people in the images before you. This is a living exhibit, one meant to bring us closer together. It is hoped that it will bring us into a stronger community, better educated, tolerant, more aware and most of all, empowered for the common good.

Manuel L. Martinez
Assistant Professor
English Department
Indiana University, Bloomington