Carrying the Future: Honoring Dolores Huerta and Maternal Lineage.

(image above and below) UFW leaders march arm in arm with Dolores Huerta to the California State Capitol to demand Governor Newsom sign AB2183. Aug 8, 2022. Roberta Alvarado.

As we wrap up Women’s History Month, my heart is with our community as we stand in support of Dolores Huerta, Ana Murguia, and Debra Rojas, as well as the other women who have come forward regarding Cesar Chavez. These women were part of the movement from the time they were young, watching their families fight for decent working conditions and basic rights.

While many of us grew up looking up to Cesar Chavez, I am proud of how quickly our community has stepped up to address this and support Dolores. I also appreciate that members of the Chavez family have spoken out in support of the women. As a fellow survivor, I know how triggering this is for many of us, and my heart is truly with you. We wish Dolores strength and hope that she, and all the women who have come forward, can find healing and peace. Their courage in speaking truth to power is the heartbeat of the stories I choose to tell.

I have spent years documenting this history  independently. I first covered Dolores Huerta on the ground during the final stretch of the 335 mile march to the state capitol for the signing of AB 2183. At 92 years old, she lent her iconic experience to ensure farmworkers finally won the right to vote for their union leaders by mail. This was a critical move to help protect farmworkers from ongoing practices of intimidation, coercion, and threats of deportation by the employing farmers. 

Did you know that Dolores is the actual creator of the rallying cry, "Sí, SE PUEDE!" It started in 1972 in Arizona when she was organizing farmworkers to fight a law prohibiting their right to strike. When people told her it was impossible, she simply replied, "Sí SE PUEDE!" - YES WE CAN!

Top L-R: Q&A with local youth; Keynote address. Bottom L-R: Huerta with Christian Tonatiuh González Jiménez and dignitaries; Huerta with Councilmember Mai Vang.

Invitation: Brown Women on a Brown Continent

My new installation, "Brown Women on a Brown Continent," is now officially open at the Kaneko Gallery at American River College. This is a group exhibit featuring beautiful work from 6 artists. I created an avant-garde installation on the gallery wall to tell a poetic story. It starts with a small, almost unseen finch on the rockscape, "Being". I used natural materials like deer antlers, clay fragments, a buffalo skull, a clay cántaro, which represents the womb, and twine the nervous system, biology. The rocks and stones ground the piece as a symbol of the strength, interlocked presence, and permanence of Brown women on the American continent. I AM ROCK.

I want to give a special thank you to Esme Cabrera, also known as the Backyardologist (@the_backyardologist), who is featured in this work. I feel it is important to bring these facts to the forefront during these times of targeting Indigenous Americans.

Reception Dates at the Kaneko Gallery:

• Thursday, April 2nd at 12:00 PM

• Saturday, April 4th at 12:00 PM

Spring Portraits: Documenting the Lineage

I’ve been sitting with a beautiful, poetic miracle lately. Did you know that when a woman is pregnant with her daughter, she is already carrying the cells that will one day become her grandchildren? A female fetus develops her entire lifetime supply of eggs while she is still in the womb; meaning your future grandchild exists inside the grandmother's body when she carried her daughter because the biological blueprint for that next generation is already physically present within the daughter's developing ovaries.

This means your granddaughter was physically nourished by your own body’s blood and breath long before she took her first breath. I literally carried my new granddaughter within me, decades before she was born. Life is beautiful.

That is why there is such an incredible, unexplainable bond with our grandchildren. It’s why, when they are in your arms, they recognize you, they find a peace that has been physically woven into them since the beginning. Becoming an Abuelita again recently has shifted how I see these connections, and it is awe inspiring to witness this maternal lineage continue and to welcome another generation of women into our family.

My granddaughter arrived a month early, tiny and sweet at 4lbs 11oz, and she is now healthy and precious. She was visiting the other day and I couldn't help but grab my camera for some candid shots (I'm only sharing small details out of respect for my daughter's online wishes). I even put together a small grid starting with my newborn photo next to my three children and her and my grandson all as newborns. the resemblance is a literal visual map of our family's history. My granddaughter is our newest chapter in a very long line of matriarchs rooted to this continent. She is another reminder to me of why I absolutely love that photography is one of the very few things in this world that grows more valuable with time. You can never get a moment back, and once it passes, a photograph becomes an irreplaceable piece of your story. ** Please print photographs.

With Spring here, New Bird Studio is opening up the calendar for a limited number of portrait sessions. We would love to help you document your own family’s lineage - whether it’s the arrival of a new infant, a multi-generational session with grandparents, or a fresh family portrait.

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The Lineage Session | $325

Created for up to 5 family members to document your journey.

• 90 Minutes: A relaxed, unhurried session at the studio or on location.

• 15 Images: Hand-edited, high-resolution digital files.

• The Print Mandate: A physical set of 5x7 archival deep-matte prints, because our history belongs in our hands.

• Additional family members: $25 per person.

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How to Schedule:

To get a date on the calendar, you can reach out in two easy ways:

1. Reply directly to this email and let me know what window of time works best for you; weekdays, Saturday, or Sunday.

2. Visit our website at www.NewBirdStudio.com to view more of our work and send an inquiry.

I look forward to honoring the lineage that brought you here, and the new life that carries it forward through art! .

Peace and Kindness,

Roberta Alvarado