Natalia Ventura
BORDERLANDS REGION, 2022 - 2023
Natalia Ventura (she/her/ella) is an interdisciplinary artist, activist, and abolitionist from Chula Vista, California. She earned a B.A. in Peace Studies with a self-designed minor in Aesthetic Activism from Chapman University in May 2021. Studying nonviolence in college led Ventura to discover a passion for art as a tool for social change. Her work often reflects her Mexican-Cuban-American triculturalism and border-dwelling experience. She aims to build an art practice that simultaneously transforms herself and her community through radical love. Ventura is currently engaging in self-healing, community organizing, and art-making in the San Diego-Tijuana borderlands.
Natalia is fighting against and bringing attention to the construction of two parallel 30' walls through Friendship Park, a binational park located at the western end of the US-Mexico border where for generations people have gathered on both sides to meet with loved ones.
Since the beginning of the implementation of 30' walls along the border, the tallest our border walls have ever been, San Diego's hospital trauma centers have seen an over 200% increase in migrant injuries and deaths from falling attempting to climb the walls. In Friendship Park, the walls will additionally completely block views going both ways and create more distance between friends and family who visit there.
Informed by the work of local doctors, activists, and community leaders who are mobilizing against 30' walls, Natalia worked with organizers to host a resistance encampment called "El Pueblito." The activation was anchored by Friends of Friendship Park, with an invitation to the region’s grassroots organizations, activist groups and beyond. They gathered to build community, collective consciousness and action to stop the construction of 30-foot border walls at Friendship Park. Natalia lead art workshops and artistic interventions at the Pueblito, and contributed some solo performance art.
CULTURE HUB
Casa Familiar is the leading service and community development organization in the community of San Ysidro, California, providing over 40 bilingual programs and services at six different sites in the community. Programs range from Civic Engagement to Health & Social Services, Arts & Culture to Education. The Arts & Culture arm of Casa Familiar was strengthened 15 years ago with the foundation of The FRONT Arte & Cultura, a community art space, performance and meeting venue for artists and residents. Since then, the FRONT has been organizing art exhibitions, such as the Annual Dia de la Mujer Art Exhibition, that soon became a tradition in San Diego and it is now celebrating its 15th anniversary. Our paid Art Docent Program, paid Workforce Development and Art Apprenticeship Programs for youth have been happening for 6 years now. Over 80 youth have benefited from those programs. We also organize workshops, performances, talks and several other artistic and cultural events relevant to the binational artistic life of our community, while also keeping an eye and participating in the international arts scene.
SOCIAL IMPACT INITIATIVE
The Friends of Friendship Park is a program under the non-profit Via International. Our goal is to increase public access to our biantional park so that the idea of Friendship and collaboration for part of the border narrative. We work closely with allies on both sides of the border to perform regular events like the Border Church and gardening, workshops, and artistic events at our Binational Friendshp Garden of Native Plants.