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Diaspora, displacement and family photos at new exhibition
A video still of Ann Le's 'What we lost in the Ocean' (2022).
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Courtesy Ann Le/Graphic design by Jada Wong
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In the new exhibition A Tender Excavation at the Luckman Gallery at Cal State L.A., 15 artists dug through their family photo archives to create pieces connecting personal histories of diaspora with larger themes of discrimination, displacement, slavery and — ultimately — healing.
“They work with their family photo archives in a way that is transformative,” said Selene Preciado, curator and director of programming at the Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions, or LACE. “The works are very personal and deep. I hope that ... people see themselves also reflected in those histories.”
Most of the artists featured in the exhibition are based in L.A., and their works incorporate photography, video, painting and sculpture.
For LACE curator Preciado, who grew up in Tijuana and spent the past 15 years of her life in Los Angeles, the themes hit close to home.
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“I feel really connected to the different diasporas that comprise our population here in L.A. because we have very similar histories ... of colonization, histories of pain and displacement with immigration. And I think that finding transformation and healing and thriving from that, it's very special … especially when it comes from the power of art.”
A Tender Excavation is on view at the Luckman Gallery at Cal State L.A. starting Saturday through Feb. 21, 2026.
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