At first glance, Xavier Tavera’s photographs evoke a calm Midwest landscape of windswept prairie grasses and frozen lakes. Look closer and embedded images disrupt the calm — a protester mid-scream, youth in floral masks and a whistle inscribed with the words “Ice Out.” 

Across the Twin Cities this weekend, visual art, poetry and opera are unearthing “unsettled” histories at a time of scrutiny regarding land rights, immigrant identity and the archival gaps in the American story.

“I think we can do a little bit of reflection of who we are, belonging to this land, or not belonging to this land. Who gets to say? We’re still standing on stolen land and this sense of ownership is still kind of strange to a lot of us,” Tavera said. 

Minnesota land meets community resistance

At Minneapolis’ Cruise gallery, Mexican photographer Xavier Tavera moves away from his signature portraiture of cowboys and veterans to explore the tension between land and the communities resisting heightened immigration enforcement.

“Every time I open social media, I’m bombarded with these images,” Tavera said of documenting the recent protests calling for an end to Operation Metro Surge. “I thought maybe I can do something different.”

The collage merges nature photography he has taken across the state over the past decade with street photography from the present moment.

“There’s always an underlying tension that this land has suffered,” Tavera said. “From the genocide of Native Americans to the lynchings in Duluth. The camps where they’re detaining migrants and observers right now in Fort Snelling is sacred land. The Bdote is there but we tend to ignore that.”

By inserting scenes of present-day conflict within expansive landscapes, Tavera treats the land as a living archive that absorbs feelings of grief, fear and anger. 

He also turns a critical eye toward photography itself, noting how images of American land have historically helped sell the idea of an empty, peaceful frontier — a place waiting to be occupied. 

“Minnesota is the epicenter of injustice right now and the land knows that. The land hasn’t forgotten all that has happened,” he said. “I don’t want to put it in a ‘doomsday’ light. Beautiful things happen here in Minnesota. That’s why we’re here. There’s opportunities. We thrive here. There’s a beautiful community that relies on this land.”

One photograph shows youth of color in matching yellow floral masks confronting a white supremacist at a protest in downtown Minneapolis. Their coverings read as colorful defiance against the tactical gear and dark clothing around them.

Tavera has long been fascinated by masks, from Mexican wrestler heroes to the Chinelos, folk dancers who poke fun at Spanish conquistadors during carnivals in Morelos, Mexico.

“With ICE agents, it serves several purposes to have a mask,” he said. “For one, they know there’s going to be personal retaliation eventually. The other one is that the look is super menacing. I’ve seen them without the mask and it’s just another guy. But all of a sudden, with a mask, they exert this sort of fear and authority.” 

He hopes visitors attend the opening reception on Friday, Feb. 6, to connect in a shared moment of reflection. 

“We’re all going through the same things — not sleeping, having helicopters on our roofs, going through the streets of Minneapolis and St. Paul in a very tense way,” he said. “Of course, the winter doesn’t help. We are in our homes, looking at our phones, but I think being in community on Friday can dilute some of these tensions.”

The power of Black youth

The Minnesota African American Heritage Museum and Gallery will also celebrate Black History Month with “I, Too, Am America,” a multimedia show inspired by Maya Angelou, Jean-Michel Basquiat and a 1926 poem by Langston Hughes. The exhibit features collage art by A. Drew Hammond paired with poetry by A.E. Wynter to celebrate the resilience of Black youth in America. Listen in on their artist talk on Thursday, March 12 from 6 to 8 p.m.  

An intimate portrait of composer Florence Price

Long before she made history as the first Black woman to have a symphony performed by a major American orchestra in Chicago, Florence Price was already a prodigy at the piano, composing works that blended European classical traditions with African American spirituals and folk music. 

After being largely overlooked for decades, her music is being celebrated in a new light through the Minnesota Opera’s world premiere “My Name is Florence.”

Catch the final weekend of this work, which tells the story of a woman breaking barriers and navigating the racial and gendered landscapes of the early 20th-century classical music world. 

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