This past year has been full of drastic changes, moments that have required both resilience and great flexibility. This experience has led me to reflect, as a migrant woman, on the notion of relaxation and self-worth in the lives of women, particularly those who migrate. I think about the silent and heavy burden that weighs on our bodies, compounded by the many other responsibilities faced by those who choose or are forced to migrate.
After our first conversation between artist Luisa Niño and Mariana Marin, Director of Legados, where we shared many of the challenges we have faced as immigrants, numerous questions arose. However, one in particular remained: When was the last time we truly experienced rest, relaxation, and peace?
I have met brave, productive, strong, kind, and often anxious women. Women who are creative, courageous, and compassionate, yet rarely appear truly relaxed or at ease. I have noticed how difficult it is for women to grant themselves unconditional permission to relax—without guilt, without apologies, without feeling the need to earn it.
This reflection highlights a yearning to embody a state of relaxation: a woman who values rest, pleasure, and self-compassion without guilt or excuses. It articulates a vision of an intuitive woman who lives according to her values and prioritizes her well-being over productivity and external achievements.
During the Legados artist residency in the summer of 2024, Luisa was invited to delve into a state of slowness and gentle practices aimed at reshaping responses to stress, the constant pressure to produce, and the relentless need to do. At the same time, she reflected on self-worth, rest, and intrinsic pleasure. This, of course, intertwines with her exploration of cultural heritage and her journey as a migrant woman.
The works presented in Pedacito de Tierra are the result of moments of deep meditation, reflection, and a slowed pace that allowed the artist to create without pressure or oppression. These pieces capture the long hours of a warm summer that Luisa spent in the Legados workshop, a space that became her creative refuge. There, amidst reading poetry and the serenity of her thoughts, Luisa allowed her ideas to flow freely, exploring themes of rest, relaxation, and the pursuit of peace in an organic and sincere way.
Pedacito de Tierra invites us to slow down, to take a mindful pause, and to breathe with calm. It proposes reevaluating the burdens we carry—not just physical ones, but emotional and mental as well—and questioning their weight and validity in our lives. This call to reflection emphasizes the importance of prioritizing holistic well-being, understanding that rest, calm, and self-compassion are necessary and subversive acts in a world that constantly demands productivity and external achievements. Thus, this exhibition becomes a space of resistance and self-affirmation, an opportunity to reconsider our priorities, and ultimately, to value well-being and pleasure as fundamental and intrinsic rights of our existence.
