The Riverside Art Museum's Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture has opened 'Chicano Camera Culture: A Photographic History, 1966–2026', the first major survey of Chicano contributions to photography. Curated by Elizabeth Ferrer, the exhibition spans six decades, beginning with the Chicano civil rights movement, and features 45 artists including five from the Midwest such as Daniel Ramos, Diana Solís, and Martina Lopez. A companion publication of the same title, edited by Ferrer, is also available.
This exhibition matters because it addresses the historical underrepresentation of Chicano photographers within the broader narrative of American photography. Ferrer emphasizes that these voices have not been integrated into mainstream art history, and the show aims to correct that by mapping out a lineage of Chicano participation and innovation in the medium. The exhibition also highlights how photography has served as a tool for agency and community documentation within Chicano culture, from the civil rights era to contemporary digital experimentation.