Artspeak Radio, Wednesday, December 17, 2025, 9am -10am CST, 90.1fm KKFI Kansas City Community Radio, streaming live audio www.kkfi.org
Producer/host Maria Vasquez Boyd welcomes Jenny Mendez and Betsabeé Romero.
JENNY MENDEZ, Cultural Arts Director Mattie Rhodes Arts Center and Gallery
was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri. Growing up in a neighborhood filled with family and friends on Kansas City’s West Side. As a young girl Jenny enjoyed hearing stories from her grandmother, these stories were such an inspiration to Jenny in her love of her culture and heritage. Jenny attended the Kansas City Art Institute majoring in painting, she also studied both printmaking and photography. She was involved in community mural projects as a high school student and into college. She has always given back to her community. She has been employed with the Mattie Rhodes Center for the past twenty- five years and is responsible for all arts programming for the agency as the Cultural Arts Director.
Through her work she is able to educate the community on the Latino culture through art. Being able to inspire children through art is what she is most passionate about – giving children and young artists a place to learn, create, express themselves, imagine, and grow in the arts. She has served and participated on many boards and committees through the years advocating for the arts and community. Her most valued appointment was to the board of the National Association of Latino Arts and Culture (NALAC). Most recently in March of 2020 as part of Women’s History Month she was awarded the Nuestra Latina Award for the Arts by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Her work in the community is valued and shows her commitment to being a voice for the Latinx artists, students and individuals. Showing her expertise in the creative process and authenticity to arts and culture through her work and partnerships with the Kansas City Museum and the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art. She is very committed to continue to be a voice for the Latinx and arts communities at large.
Mattie Rhodes Art and Cultural Center is located at 1701 Jarboe, KCMO
www.mattierhodes.org
BETSABEÉ ROMERO- Knitting Ties, Project Description:
The installation features the creation of two sculptural soccer goals with nets crafted from metal lattices. These lattices will showcase characters that represent both soccer and the pre-Hispanic ball game, creating a bridge between contemporary sports and ancient cultural traditions. The metallic lattices will be interwoven with threads of various fibers, with the characters cut along the length and width of each goal's net. All elements will be handcrafted by migrants and local artisans, emphasizing community collaboration and cultural exchange.
Elements of the Sculptural Objective:
Metallic Lattices-metal cutouts are interconnected in a lattice configuration, forming modular structures that provide a sculptural foundation for artistic interventions.
Community Networks-Fabrics crafted by volunteers and artisans interweave with lattices, forming distinctive patterns that narrate the stories of their communities.
Athletic Emblems-Symbolic figures associated with soccer are integrated into the sculptural design, linking artistic expression with the passion for football.
Betsabeé Romero; Education: Bachelor's Degree in Communication with a specialization in Participatory Communication, Universidad Iberoamericana (1984) Master's Degree in Visual Arts, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (1986) Diploma from l'École Supérieure des Beaux-Arts (1989) Art History Studies at l'École du Louvre (1988-1989) Doctoral studies in Art History, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, no degree completed (1990-1993)
Exhibitions:
Romero has held over 100 solo exhibitions across five continents, with notable shows at the British Museum (2015), Grand Palais (2019), Royal Botanic Gardens Kew (2022), York Avenue in Washington (2018), Place Vieille Bourse in Lille, France (2019), Nevada Museum of Art (2014), Neuberger Museum (2011), Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art (2012), Canberra University Museum (2002), La Recoleta, Buenos Aires (2019), Mexico Pavilion at Expo Dubai 2020 (2021), and Place du Louvre (2021). In 2024, her exhibition "Huellas para Recordar" featured five monumental sculptures on Park Avenue (81st, 82nd, and 83rd Streets) by invitation of NYC Parks & Recreation.
Also in 2024, "The Endless Spiral" was featured at the Venice Biennale Official Collateral Event at Galeria Belacqua LaMassa, St. Mark's Square, by invitation of MOLAA.
In Mexico, highlights include the Mega Ofrenda at Mexico City's Zócalo (2016), Museo Frida Kahlo (2019, 2013), Museo Anahuacalli (2015), Antiguo Colegio de San Ildefonso (2014), Museo Amparo, Puebla (2008), MARCO, Monterrey (2009), and Museo Carrillo Gil (1999).
Collections:
Her work is part of major collections including the British Museum, Museum of Contemporary Art Houston, Phoenix Art Museum, Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal, Daros Collection
(Switzerland), Nelson-Atkins Museum, Nevada Museum of Art, World Bank Collection, LACMA California, FEMSA, Irish Museum of Modern Art, El Museo del Barrio, Museo de Arte Moderno de
México, MUAC, and Michigan State University.
Biennials: Monterrey Biennial, Tamayo Biennial, inSite (Tijuana-San Diego), La Courneuve Biennial, Puerto Rico Graphics Triennial, Polygráfica Philadelphia, Ljubljana Graphics Biennial, Havana Biennial, Porto Alegre Biennial, Cairo Biennial, Sur Buenos Aires Biennial, Bogotá, and United Arab Emirates.
Official selection for collateral projects at the 2024 Venice Biennale with the solo exhibition "Endless Spiral" with MOLAA Museum at the Bellaacqua La Massa Foundation in St. Mark's Square.
Awards: Prix Oric'Art, Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, 1988 Grand Acquisition Prize in Installation, Second Monterrey Biennial, Museo de Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico, 1994 First Prize, Cairo Biennial, 2006
Millésimé Prize in Visual Arts, 2018 Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres, France, 2020 First Prize in Pavilion Design
