Night of Ideas

Schedule

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PM

3:00 Ends at: 5:00 pm

International Museum of Art & Science (IMAS)

Exhibition

McAllen (TX)

México: Crisis and Uprising

Mexico: Crisis and Uprising contemplates artworks in which symbols pierce reality, so that the viewer gains the necessary strength to ponder the current situation in Mexico.

As seen throughout Mexico’s great artistic tradition, death plays an unavoidable part in the narratives of these artists. From the engravings of Posada to the literature of Rulfo or the films of Gonzalez Iñárritu, death seems to trace the path of the conscience (inner voice) of these works. This way of viewing death impacts these artists, yet they treat it with the respect and mystery unique to Mexican culture. The themes include some of Mexico’s most complex moments in recent history. Moments in which death, violence, and emptiness have seized an entire society. The artist’s eye captures these crises, reinterprets them, but also becomes amazed with the resistance and spiritual uprising the Mexican people express every time the world tries to ignore them.

This exhibit features the work of 34 artists from the Asociación Plástica de Monterrey, Asociación de la Plástica de Garza Garcia, and independent artists in Monterrey, Nuevo León MX.

México: Crisis & Uprising was curated by Samuel Rodriguez in partnership with the participating artists in this exhibition.

Disclaimer: Some of the works in this exhibit contain sensitive or graphic material. Viewer discretion advised.

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PM

4:00 Ends at: 4:45 pm

International Museum of Art & Science (IMAS)

Talk

McAllen (TX)

Curator Talk: “México: Crisis & Uprising”

With curator Samuel Rodriguez Medina

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PM

5:00 Ends at: 5:15 pm

McAllen Public Library

Introductory Speech

McAllen (TX)

Introductory Speech

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PM

5:00 Ends at: 9:30 pm

McAllen Public Library (Lobby gallery)

Exhibition

McAllen (TX)

Mi Vida Loca

Exhibition by artist Mark Clark, influenced by pre-Columbian art and border culture.

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PM

5:15 Ends at: 9:00 pm

McAllen Public Library (Lobby)

Virtual Reality

McAllen (TX)

Virtual Reality Experience: The Overview Effect

“The Overview Effect” is a cognitive shift in awareness reported by astronauts who saw the Earth from space. Senior astronaut Jean-François Clervoy is one of the few to have experienced the phenomenon. Discover his story from a legendary astronomical observatory at the top of the Pyrenees Mountains before going to space. 

By virtual reality media company TARGO.

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PM

5:15 Ends at: 5:40 pm

McAllen Public Library (Auditorium)

Talk

McAllen (TX)

Escrituras de la frontera

Philippe Ollé-Laprune

La escritura literaria tiene una gran atracción hacia la frontera, espacio complejo que el autor puede usar según sus intenciones. la puede ver como un puente, un muro, una evasión posible… Escribir es desafiar las fronteras, ir más allá. Escribir es superar las fronteras. El o la que escribe lo sabe: la literatura consiste en posponer las imposiciones de la realidad… 

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PM

5:40 Ends at: 6:05 pm

McAllen Public Library (Auditorium)

Talk

McAllen (TX)

Border Life: The Best of Both Worlds

David Bowles

Río Grande Valley native David Bowles shares his children’s book My Two Border Towns, using it to discuss the unique and rewarding nature of life on the border with Mexico. 

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PM

5:40 Ends at: 6:05 pm

McAllen Public Library (Children's Department)

Performance

McAllen (TX)

Dance Performance

By the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley Dance Ensemble

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PM

6:05 Ends at: 6:30 pm

McAllen Public Library (Auditorium)

Talk

McAllen (TX)

The Rio Grande: Origins, Rift and Significance

Luc Lavier

The Rio Grande holds a profound place in the history of the Southwest, weaving through the geological and human narrative of Mexico and Texas for the past 35 million years. Embarking on a brief journey of discovery, we delve into the origins of this natural boundary and explore its profound significance for the human population in the Southwest. Join us on this exploration of the rift, the river, and the valley that have shaped a region’s identity and heritage over a millennia. 

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PM

6:05 Ends at: 6:30 pm

McAllen Public Library (Children's Department)

Readings

McAllen (TX)

Poetry Readings by Priscilla Suarez

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PM

6:05 Ends at: 7:20 pm

McAllen Public Library (Meeting room A)

Workshop

McAllen (TX)

XXL Collective Drawing Workshop

As a group, participants will take the time to get to know each other and brainstorm on the theme of  “Outside the Lines”. Then, step by step, they will be guided and will collectively create an XXL large drawing to be displayed later in the library. No prior drawing experience is required. Ideal capacity: about 30 people. 

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PM

6:30 Ends at: 6:55 pm

McAllen Public Library (Auditorium)

Talk

McAllen (TX)

Maps as Visual Poems

Rodney Gomez

This presentation will discuss maps as sources of visual poetry. Visual poetry is poetry that combines both visual elements and word text in the same space. Poet Rodney Gomez will discuss his latest visual poetry project that reconceptualizes existing maps of cities and towns in the Rio Grande Valley and the United States. 

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PM

6:30 Ends at: 6:55 pm

McAllen Public Library (Children's Department)

Readings, Singing

McAllen (TX)

Performances by UTRGV Students of French

“La Vie en Rose” by Mariah Gruel + poem by Alma Macossay Hernandez

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PM

6:55 Ends at: 7:20 pm

McAllen Public Library (Auditorium)

Talk

McAllen (TX)

Frontera física, frontera mental ¿Una línea real o abstracta?

Antoine Lissorgues

La migración cómo un proceso de enriquecimiento cultural, y a su vez un desafío por haberse convertido en un negocio lucrativo. Caso de la frontera sur de México, el corredor selva.

 

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PM

6:55 Ends at: 7:20 pm

McAllen Public Library (Children's Department)

Performance

McAllen (TX)

Music Performance

By the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley New Music Ensemble

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PM

7:20 Ends at: 7:45 pm

McAllen Public Library

Exhibition

McAllen (TX)

Poetry Readings by Rodney Gomez

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PM

7:20 Ends at: 7:45 pm

McAllen Public Library (Auditorium)

Talk

McAllen (TX)

Anything for Selena: A Podcast About Belonging  

Maria Garcia

In this presentation, artist Maria Garcia shares the inspiration for her cult-classic podcast, “Anything for Selena,” a memorisitic, narrative show that combines cultural analysis and immersive storytelling to shed light on the indelible impact of Tejano superstar Selena Quintanilla. Maria will talk about the ethos of the show, which celebrates her bicultural identity and how Selena’s own celebration of her working class Mexican-American roots gave Maria permission to be her authentic self. 

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PM

7:45 Ends at: 8:10 pm

McAllen Public Library (Auditorium)

Talk

McAllen (TX)

El caso de “musicaenelnoreste.mx” : la divulgación científica como ciencia, técnica y arte

José Juan Olvera

Retos y desafíos para la construcción de un sitio electrónico de divulgación de ciencias sociales, especializado en estudios de música popular, denominado músicaenelnoreste.mx. El sitio fue elaborado para compartir con el gran público material etnográfico, escrito y audiovisual, sobre tres culturas musicales del noreste de México y sur de Texas. 

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PM

8:10 Ends at: 8:35 pm

McAllen Public Library (Auditorium)

Talk

McAllen (TX)

Mexican Americans and Sport: A Growing Area of Historical Research; Jesus “Chuy’ Guerra’s Career as an Example of Such Works

Jorge Iber

Professor Jorge Iber will provide a brief overview of the subject, and use Mr. Guerra’s accomplishments as an example of the work that he does. 

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PM

8:35 Ends at: 9:00 pm

McAllen Public Library (Auditorium)

Talk

McAllen (TX)

II Congreso Somos vínculos. Expresiones sociales, culturales y económicas del noreste y Texas

Séverine Durin

El noreste de México y Texas conforman una región transfronteriza con vínculos de múltiples dimensiones; estas serán analizadas los días previos a “La Nuit des Idées” en el II Congreso Somos Vínculos en la universidad de TAMIU en Laredo, donde se abordarán temas como la gestión del agua, la economía, la migración, las desapariciones de personas, y la música en espacio transfronterizo.

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PM

9:00 Ends at: 9:30 pm

McAllen Public Library (Lobby)

Performance

McAllen (TX)

Mariachi Performance

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