Victoria Martinez Honors Latin American Legacy in New Poetry Foundation Exhibition | Minneapolis College of Art and Design

Victoria Martinez Honors Latin American Legacy in New Poetry Foundation Exhibition

September 27, 2025
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Victoria Martinez, mural at the Poetry Foundation
Victoria Martinez ’10

Victoria Martinez ’10 brings her bold, abstract visual language to the Poetry Foundation in Frente a la vida/Facing Life, an exhibition that pairs her newest work with poetry by the late Peruvian writer and political activist Magda Portal.

Martinez, a Chicago native raised in Pilsen, draws from her lived experience, vibrant cityscapes, and Latinx heritage to create immersive, multilayered works. This latest exhibition marks a new direction for the artist, featuring wall-hung ceramic paintings alongside site-specific murals rendered in somber tones that echo Portal’s emotionally rich writing.

Martinez’s thoughtful pairing with Portal, a poet known for both her revolutionary politics and personal tragedies, reflects her broader artistic mission: to uplift the complex histories of Latinx women. “I always want to associate myself [with] different Latin American or Latinx women in history,” Martinez says. “We’re not just one type of person.”

Frente a la vida/Facing Life
September 20, 2025–February 21, 2026
Poetry Foundation (Chicago, IL)

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