Voces de Mis Antepasados/Voices of My Ancestors: The Papercuts of Catalina Delgado Trunk

Catalina Delgado Trunk, born in Mexico City in 1945, is of Nahuatl and Culhuacan descent on her father’s side. She grew up in Coyoacán, one of the capital’s wealthiest neighborhoods, as well as one of the most vibrant, with artists such as Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo also calling it home. As a girl, Delgado Trunk studied dance at the Academia de Ballet in Mexico City and the Royal Academy of Dance in London. She also learned French at a young age and eventually earned her degree in French Literature from the University of Texas. After emigrating to the United States and raising a family, Delgado Trunk reenrolled in school at the age of forty-nine—this time pursuing the visual arts and taking the opportunity to engage more fully with her native Mexican heritage. Drawing on the rich tradition of cut paper crafts (or papel picado) in Mexico, Delgado Trunk creates intricate works that tell the stories of pre-contact indigenous cultures as well as treating more contemporary subjects.

The exhibition is made possible through the generous support of Drs. Elizabeth Moyer and Michael Powanda.