Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM 14 UCW FEBRUARY 23 - MARCH 1, 2022 From pieces of artwork traveling across the ocean and being exhibited in in- ternational galleries to hav- ing her first solo exhibition in the United States, 2022 is proving to be the year for lo- cal art teacher Aurelis Lugo. Lugo, originally from Puer- to Rico, moved to Fayetteville two years ago with her son. She never expected to move out of Puerto Rico, especially as a single mom. But curi- osity got the better of her prompting her to move to Fayetteville. Not long after relocating, she found a position teach- ing art within Cumberland County Schools. While painting murals for local Fayetteville Puerto Ri- can restaurants, she also sub- mitted pieces of art to differ- ent local shows. So when she heard about the Fayetteville Arts Council mini-grants, she knew she had to apply, hoping to help extend her series or artwork highlighting Puerto Rican women. Lugo's exhibit, "Inmarc- esible," featured eleven acrylic paintings on display in Puerto Rico. These pieces highlighted Puerto Rican women. She wanted to continue that series and highlight more Afro-Puerto Rican women who made his- tory but still did not receive proper recognition. "Their stories need to be visualized; they need to be brought up again," Lugo said. "Now the thing is that the women that I'm portraying, even though they did amaz- ing stuff, they are not recog- nized as they should because of two main reasons, they were black, and they were women." The exhibit received fund- ing and will be opening this weekend at Cape Fear Studios. The "Fadeless" exhibition will highlight nine additional women and their stories. Some of the highlighted women include María Liber- tad Gómez Garriga, the first woman to hold the position of President of the House for the Puerto Rican House of Representatives and the only woman to sign the Constitu- tion of Puerto Rico in 1952. Another woman highlight- ed in the exhibit is Carmen Belem Richardson, the first Black Puerto Rican actress to appear on television in Puerto Rico. "Fadeless" also demon- strates Lugo's outreach into mixed-media paintings. She incorporates spray paint, glitter, molding and all types of materials into the images. She says this showcases her growth and the change she has experienced as an art- ist and person since her last exhibit. "Personally, it means a lot to me because it's like, another goal that I accom- plished. And also because of the kind of message that I'm delivering with this. I'm not only showing my culture; I'm showing that My people have interesting people that you should know about. And they can be an example. Mainly [for] everybody." Lugo said that preparing for a solo exhibition is like preparing for a wedding. It's a big day, and everything needs to be perfect. She says she visited the North Carolina Museum of Art quite a bit while prepar- ing for the opening of "Fade- less." "So this is my big thing, and it feels so different from the ones that I did in Puerto Rico. My first solo exhibi- tion in Puerto Rico was in a gallery at a mall," Lugo said. "But this time, it feels very different. Because I'm out- side my country and it's like a big responsibility. Because I'm bringing my culture, I'm letting others see how impor- tant these women are. And it's like a lot of pressure, but it's also it's a big accomplish- ment." Lugo also has other pres- sures, as her artwork is cur- rently on display in London at the Boomer Gallery at Tower Bridge. Soon her art- work will travel to Rome and then this summer it will be in Spain. Looking to the future, Lugo is already planning her next addition to her series. She hopes to create full-length art pieces that incorporate fashion and clothing materi- als into her art. "This is like a never-ending project that I will continue working on and working on it, no matter where in the world I am," Lugo said. "I'll continue working on it be- cause there are a lot of wom- en that did amazing things." Cape Fear Studios & Gal- lery will be holding a gallery opening for "Fadeless" on Feb. 25 at 6 p.m. The exhibit will be open to the public until March 22. Local artist highlights women who are 'Fadeless' by HANNAH LEE Above: A painting from Aurelis Lugo's upcoming show Fadeless depicting Angela Maria Davila, a note-worthy Afro-Puerto Rican woman. Below: Aurelis Lugo, artist poses for photographer Lily Santiago. Photos courtesy of Aurelis Lugo.) EVENTS HANNAH LEE, Assistant Editor. COMMENTS? Editor@upand- comingweekly.com. 910-484- 6200.