\u201cStrangers in Our Own Land,\u201d a new exhibition by artist Cynthia Gutierrez-Krapp at the Stanlee and Gerald Rubin Center for the Visual Arts\u00a0at the\u00a0University\u00a0of Texas at El Paso (UTEP),\u00a0opened on Feb. 19.\u00a0It\u00a0explores\u00a0Indigenous identity, migration,\u00a0erasure through large-scale beadwork, clay\u00a0installations\u00a0and sound.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Curated by senior curator\u00a0Andres\u00a0Payan Estrada, the exhibition centers on Gutierrez-Krapp\u2019s Din\u00e9, Navajo, Mescalero Apache and Yaqui heritage, weaving together personal history and broader Borderland narratives.\u00a0The show\u00a0uses sound and space to reconcile the past with the present, grappling with uprootedness, inherited\u00a0history\u00a0and the struggle for identity in a region shaped by migration.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For\u00a0Payan\u00a0Estrada, who began his role at the Rubin Center\u00a0in\u00a0June 2025, working on the exhibition felt deeply personal. As someone from the region, he said the project resonated beyond institutional programming.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cA large part of it is an exploration of her own identity,\u201d\u00a0Payan\u00a0Estrada said. \u201cIt\u2019s rooted in reclamation\u00a0bringing back narratives that are core to who she is and really at the core of who our community here in El Paso is, too.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The title \u201cStrangers in Our Own Land\u201d reflects\u00a0the\u00a0duality of belonging and displacement.\u00a0Payan\u00a0Estrada described it as the tension of being\u00a0tied to a place\u00a0that has\u00a0historically and\u00a0culturally\u00a0been\u00a0made to feel like an outsider.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The exhibition\u2019s inspiration\u00a0was sparked after\u00a0Gutierrez-Krapp\u00a0and her family returned to El Paso from New York following her father\u2019s death. She felt called to reflect on her ancestry and Indigenous migration routes in the region.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI truly feel that I was told to do this by\u00a0my ancestors,\u201d Gutierrez-Krapp said. \u201cIt was something that I felt that I had to do.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Themes of erasure and forced assimilation run throughout the exhibition.\u00a0With\u00a0references\u00a0to\u00a0colonization, border\u00a0control\u00a0and the disruption of Indigenous migration patterns.\u00a0Gutierrez-Krapp\u00a0hopes viewers begin asking questions about their own family\u00a0history.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI would hope that people would start to look into their own ancestry and embrace their indigeneity from being part of these lands,\u201d\u00a0Gutierrez-Krapp\u00a0said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
One of the central pieces in the exhibition is a large clay installation composed of more than 1,800 handmade beads\u00a0that\u00a0took five years to complete. Each bead was cut, shaped,\u00a0fired\u00a0and painted to resemble the topography of the land when\u00a0viewed\u00a0above.\u00a0The physical labor mirrors the conceptual weight of the piece, mapping Indigenous migration routes across the Rio Grande region.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI wanted it to look like if you\u2019re looking from the airplane down, you can see the discolorations in the land,\u201d Gutierrez-Krapp said. \u201cIt was\u00a0a long process. It almost felt like a struggle.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Another prominent work\u00a0\u201cSpiderwoman Told\u00a0Me\u201d\u00a0extends the search for wholeness through Navajo weaving traditions and storytelling, a practice the artist grounds in a single resonant bead. Weaving symbolizes the act of gathering fragments into a unified whole and draws\u00a0from Navajo weaving traditions and storytelling.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s\u00a0like taking all the pieces and thoughts and just weaving them together, then it becomes a story.\u201d\u00a0Gutierrez-Krapp\u00a0said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Storytelling is central not only to the artwork but also to its presentation.\u00a0Payan\u00a0Estrada emphasized that storytelling allows Indigenous traditions to evolve and adapt over time while\u00a0remaining\u00a0rooted in heritage.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAs the story moves through time, it changes and adapts,\u201d\u00a0Estrada\u00a0said. \u201cThat\u2019s a way heritage and connection to land continue to shape who we are.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Gutierrez-Krapp also sees the exhibition\u00a0extending beyond art into an act of resistance.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce we take that back,\u00a0what we ate, where\u00a0we\u2019re\u00a0from, who we are,\u00a0that is a form of resistance and strength.\u201d\u00a0Gutierrez-Krapp said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For Gutierrez-Krapp, completing the exhibition marked a personal milestone.\u00a0After undergoing cancer treatment for two years, she finished her final infusion in\u00a0August\u00a02025\u00a0and immediately felt renewed energy to complete the show.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was perfect timing,\u201d\u00a0Gutierrez-Krapp\u00a0said. \u201cI kind of rebuilt energy to get this done.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Both\u00a0Gutierrez-Krapp and\u00a0Payan\u00a0Estrada\u00a0hope the exhibition encourages\u00a0UTEP\u00a0students to see art beyond traditional forms and reflect on their own identities. The show invites viewers to consider the\u00a0borderland\u00a0not as an empty desert but as a site of deep history,\u00a0migration\u00a0and survival.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe see beauty in it\u00a0[the desert landscape],\u201d Gutierrez-Krapp\u00a0said.\u00a0\u201cI want people to see that within themselves.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The exhibition is accompanied by public programming, including artist conversations and storytelling events, further expanding dialogue around Indigenous histories in the region.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Gutierrez-Krapp hopes it will travel beyond El Paso, carrying its message of remembrance and pride to broader audiences. For now, she hopes visitors leave with a renewed sense of belonging\u00a0and\u00a0perhaps fewer\u00a0questions about where they are \u201creally\u201d from.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cJust really look at the key, the legend,\u201d she said. \u201cMaybe think about what your ancestors had, where they came from. Create a story, draw it out,\u00a0just tell your story.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
As the exhibition continues through July 25, Gutierrez-Krapp hopes audiences take time to reflect on their own histories and connections to the region.<\/p>\n