If visitors to the Bristlecone Gallery at Western Nevada College look closely at the current art exhibit, they will notice prints on top of slices of cheese.
Latinx studio artist Lauren Cardenas created the images in #SueoAmericano to question the validity of the American Dream. Cardenas took photos through the tiny windows from her airplane seat and printed them on slices of Kraft Singles, drawing attention to the many people who were provided with a cheese sandwich when they were deported from the U.S.
Cardenas artwork aims to question the meaning of everyday mundane objects and her divided Mexican American identity.
Cardenas earned a Bachelor of Arts in Painting, Printmaking and Drawing from Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, and a Master of Fine Arts in Visual Art degree with a focus in Print Media from Washington University in St. Louis. She was awarded the University of Nevada, Reno Black Rock Press Redfield Fellowship from 2016-18. In collaboration with poet Daniel Enrique Perez, Cardenas published an artist book Things You See in the Dark.
When she isnt working as an artist, Cardenas serves as assistant professor and assistant director of Gallery 130 at the University of Mississippi.
#SuenoAmericano, presented by the Capital City Arts Initiative, will be shown through Sept. 30 in the Bristlecone Main Gallery, 2201 W. College Parkway in Carson City. The gallery is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. An artist reception was held on Thursday, July 22.