Nancy E. Rivera • No Present To Remember

Rivera is a Mexican American visual artist and arts administrator currently living and working in Salt Lake City, Utah. Through the mediums of photography and mixed media, Rivera explores the interplay between migration and hybridity as part of an evolving practice that investigates notions of identity, belonging, and citizenship.

FROM THE PROJECT STATEMENT • No Present to Remember is a series of soft sculptures created from family photographs during my childhood in Mexico, combined with salt sourced from the Great Salt Lake and Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, my home for the last twenty-four years. The collection of photographs from which this series originates is among the few keepsakes I carried with me when my family relocated to the U.S. in 1999 when I was twelve years old. Revisiting these snapshots as an adult, I became keenly aware of the contrasting circumstances that molded my upbringing within two distinct geographical locations. Each piece in No Present To Remember is a reflection on how these disparate landscapes have shaped my identity and experiences over the years.