In collaboration with The Mexican American Museum of Texas (TMAMT), the Laredo Center for the Arts will host the inaugural exhibit of TMAMT’s “Texas Tamaladas: A Family Tradition.” Originally exhibited at Dallas City Hall, the Tamalada exhibit opens with a reception on Saturday, December 9 at 7 p.m. at the Laredo Center for the Arts Mezzanine. The exhibit opening will honor the purpose of TMAMT, its board, and participants in the exhibit that displays the beloved regional variations of tamaladas and familial memories of the tradition.
TMAMT was founded in June 2022 and is dedicated solely to the Mexican American experience in nine regions in the state. Texas Tamaladas: A Family Tradition brings family and friends together to share in the joy of what has now become a cherished Christmas-time Mexican American tradition. The exhibit features personal essays and photographs from families around the state. Each story showcases its own customs, stories, range of ingredients, processes, and similarities.
Tamalada by Carmen Lomas Garza, 1990. Print showing a family preparing tamales in a large kitchen. From the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
TMAMT was founded in June 2022 to provide a home to share and celebrate the Mexican American experience and its diverse foundational roots of Indigenous, Afro, Spanish, Mexican, and Tejano influences.
“With the 2020 census reveal that the Texas population is nearly 40% Hispanic, of which 83% is Mexican American, the opportunity to forge this new museum is timely,” said TMAMT President Gus Hinojosa.
The founding members of TMAMT are Hinojosa; Juanita H. Nañez, vice-president; Linda Ramírez, secretary; Alex Martinez, treasurer; David Treviño, Robert Ramírez, Albert Gonzalez, and Ruben Arellano, PhD. These successful community leaders bring to the Board a wealth of knowledge and experience from their designated professions. With a focus on representing all of Texas, these leaders hail from cities across Texas.
About TMAMT: The purpose of TMAMT is to provide, permanently and on a visiting basis, a venue for exhibiting and interpreting Mexican American history, culture, and origins, from its earliest beginnings to the present. The TMAMT’s objective is to enrich current and future generations from a Mexican American perspective. Please visit www.tmamt.org.
The Laredo Center for the Arts coordinates, promotes, encourages, and supports the arts in the Laredo/South Texas area and is especially proud to present the writings of current and past Laredoans.
