Alé Rivas-Vargas - Dear Existence

About the Exhibition: Dear Existence is an exhibition that explores the interconnectivity and wide range of experiences shaped by the environments that we grow up in. While existence is one universal truth we all share, it's also personal experiences that make each of us different. Themes of identity, sexuality, poverty, gender, and belonging are central to this work.

Systems of power — gender roles, familial dysfunction, capitalism, poverty — teach us to internalize harm. These hierarchies are not incidental; they are designed. Class, race, and identity have always been interlinked.

This body of work doesn’t attempt to solve or explain. Instead, like many before and after, it insists on simply being. A presence. Dear Existence is a living archive. It is an invitation to pause, to feel, and to live in a moment rather than survive it.

Our understanding of care is deeply shaped by how we were cared for in our early lives. To me, love cannot exist without care. Romantic love isn’t the most important love. Instead, the deep connections found in friendship, chosen family, and the rebuilding or redefining of community are what matter most. Seeking support, healing, and reestablishing our inheritance are, in my view, some of the most powerful acts of existence.  – Alé Rivas-Vargas

About the Artist: Alé Rivas-Vargas is a Mexican artist based in the Inland Empire and Los Angeles. Their practice is rooted in creating accessible, community-centered art spaces for underrepresented voices. Deeply committed to practicing art with mindfulness of native land and Indigenous people, Alé approaches art-making with an awareness of place, lineage, and collective responsibility. Their work is shaped by emotional and economic experiences. They are currently pursuing a BA in Fine Arts at the University of California, Los Angeles, where they are training in photography, sculpture, painting, ceramics, drawing, and time-based media.

Alé’s art is an intentional, ongoing archive of existence — a means of liberating themselves from the weight of the past, the complexity of the present, and the uncertainty of the future. Through photography, specifically portraiture, and cinematography, Alé documents their transition from adolescence into adulthood as a Mexican artist navigating life. Their identity and cultural background offer a lens that challenges binary systems, particularly around gender and belonging.

Friendship, family, and intimacy are central themes in their work, offering both grounding and transformation. Each piece emerges from Alé’s multidimensional lived experiences, inviting viewers into spaces of love, solitude, and self-discovery.