Nancy Ariza is a printmaker, educator, and arts programmer based in Minneapolis, MN. Her artwork explores multigenerational relationships, storytelling, and memory through prints and large-scale, interactive installation. Outside of her artistic practice, Ariza has been developing and leading arts programming throughout the state of Minnesota since 2012. She currently works as the Learning and Engagement Coordinator at the Minnesota Museum of American Art and has taught at Highpoint Center for Printmaking, Minnesota Center for Books Arts, Walker Art Center, East Side Arts Council, and more. She previously developed new school programs for the Walker Art Center and served as the interim facilitator of the Walker Art Center Teen Arts Council (WACTAC). She holds a BA in Art History and a BFA in Printmaking from Minnesota State University, Mankato.
Nancy Ariza, Minneapolis, MN. Human Rights Won’t Break The Bank, Serigraph
Across the nation the Minneapolis Uprising has sparked a movement in favor of defunding the police–redirecting funds to non-policing forms of public safety and community support. Public schools, healthcare agencies, and housing programs as well as other services necessary to create a stable, healthy, and safe community have received budgetary cuts while law enforcement continue to receive resources. In fact, since the 1980s the financial investment in law enforcement and the criminal justice system, two agencies continuing to cause harm and trauma in BIPOC communities, has significantly outpaced our investment in community and health services. Our nation’s scarcity mindset would like us to believe that there are not enough resources for everyone, however, disrupting systems that misalign with community needs allows for the opportunity to center access to essential human rights.
