Art in the Garden II | December 2021

Art in the Garden is an intimate Open Scene gathering presented twice a year, bringing theater, live music, dance, visual art, puppetry, and community participation into unconventional spaces. The series creates a recurring, accessible platform where Latinx artists can experiment, share work, and connect local audiences with fresh, informal cultural experiences.

The December 19, 2021 edition combined a visual arts exhibition with a Play & Art Studio student showcase, live music, puppetry, and a Spanish-language dramatic reading.

The visual arts exhibition featured JJ González Acosta (Venezuela), Ataraxia, mixed media; Sarahy Boraure (Venezuela), León Tricolor, mixed media; Patricia Cavazos (Mexico), Lotería, acrylic on canvas; Geraldine Díaz, Mi Bandera, oil on canvas; Karina Gentile, Simbiosis, acrylic on canvas; Anduy Goliat (Venezuela), El Santo Médico de los Pobres, crayon; and Nélida Málaga (Argentina), El Caserío, acrylic.

Musical guests included Puerto Rican soprano Arleen Ramírez, whose work spans opera, musical theater, popular music, flamenco, and Hindustani music, and Venezuelan pop/new-age trio Guaramor, formed by Karina Gentile, Miguel Salas, and Marcello Salas-Gentile.

The evening culminated in a staged reading of Ladrones by Uruguayan playwright Florencio Sánchez, a social critique of inequality in early twentieth-century South American urban life. The reading was directed by Eliana Strático, with Lorenzo Sosa as assistant director, and featured Abigaíl Laboy, Alejandro Guevarez, Carlos Dimas, and Karina Gentile.

The public program also included Titirifá Producciones' puppet show Burrito Sabanero, a Play & Art Studio student recital, and participation by local artisans and small businesses including Ainoa Crochet, Gift a Plant, JJ Art and Design, Nabila Pena Rangel Insurance, Platillos Gourmet, SBoraure Art, Unique Lights, and Tita's Bakery.