About

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My name is Narciso Meneses Elizalde. I am from Hidalgo, Mexico, originally Indigenous lands still inhabited by displaced Nahua, Hñähñu, and Ñuhu (or Yùhu)  peoples. I am in part Indigenous, although of unknown affiliation due to the destructive unfolding of colonization, but working on reconnecting (one of my grandparents was Indigenous,  most likely Nahua or/and Ñuhu). For the past few years, I have lived and worked in and around what is now known as Cedar Rapids and Iowa City, in the stolen land USA state of Iowa. I earned my Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Iowa in 2013, and I have participated in several exhibitions in Eastern Iowa and beyond since then at Public Space One, Legion Arts, Dubuque Area Arts Collective, The Dubuque Museum of Art, Fine Arts Center at Colorado College, ADC Fine Art, DIY music and art shows, and several others. I create polymer clay sculptures and non-fiction writing through which I promote and celebrate Meesoamerican people’s values and consmovisions. The sculptures are composed of vibrant swirling color combinations and depict scenes that generally include humans and other-than-human beings performing actions concerning traditional Mesoamerican ritualism, especially in regards to themes of world renewal and participation in universal networks of relations, as expressed through Flower Worlds’ spirituality and related signification systems. For Indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica and Southwest USA, Flower Worlds are essentially ideal, yet experientially real, deified embodiments of the sacred living Earth as transcendent yet immanent prodigious cosmic expressions of abundance, positivity, healing, and renewal in the living environment. Furthermore, Flower Worlds can be conceptualized as extremely sacred locations, multifaceted agential dimensions of the living universe, and as highly cherished generative qualities of the cosmos. In Mesoamerica, and throughout the Indigenous Americas, the forces and processes that generated and maintain the cycle of life renewal in motion, have long been and still are elevated to divine status of the highest degrees.

The themes that inform my work revolve around traditional Indigenous ritualism, spirituality, and related forms of expression, often known as Costumbres, the "Old Ways," as practiced and created throughout what is now called Mesoamerica, from times immemorial to the present. The highly significant philosophies and noble values expressed through these ancestral practices and creative productions are among my most important sources of inspiration, not only for creative endeavors but for many other aspects of life. From extreme antiquity, the diverse expressions of the prodigious Old Ways, such as Flower Worlds spirituality, reveal that Indigenous peoples across what is now called the Americas have honored the past and the ancestors, have respected the natural environments we are all ultimately part of, and have worked to exist in harmony with the natural processes and cycles of inhabited areas as much as possible. By integrating ritualism into these and other endeavors of life, the latter are elevated to spiritual work of divine degrees with effects of cosmic magnitudes. Through these virtuous modalities of cognition and operation, the synchronization of inner and outer processes is catalyzed, resulting in the experiential unification of the person, the community, and the rest of the cosmos into a harmonious totality in constant renewal. These sophisticated ancestral Indigenous expressions and wisdom are more relevant now than ever. As global capitalist powers continue to devastate the biosphere, it is precisely these exemplary traditional values and practices that provide, as they always have, viable alternatives to the shortsighted and destructive ways in which capitalist culture engages with natural environments throughout Mother Earth.

I strive to incorporate these great Indigenous ideals in my work as a humble attempt to contribute to their diffusion and conservation. My intention is to implement the sculptures as vehicles for the communication of these brilliant Old Ways and values so that in turn they can enrich and inspire others, and more importantly, so that others might understand the transcendence of such exemplary Indigenous expressions and wisdom as effective remedies for present-day cancerous capitalist predation. The work presented here is a homage to and a celebration of ancient and contemporary Indigenous peoples throughout the Americas, who have thankfully maintained the flame of these immensely valuable traditions alive into the present. Furthermore, my work is also an expression of my most heartfelt gratitude for said honorable peoples, who’s innumerable and profound contributions to the world incalculably enrich the human experience. 

Narciso Meneses Elizalde

Sculptor, Writer, and Independent Researcher

meneseselizaldenarciso@gmail.com 

• Education

• 2019-2020 Completed several courses at the Ceramics Center, in Cedar Rapids, IA
• 2013 Bachelor of Fine Arts,  University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA
• 2010 Liberal Arts degree, Kirkwood Community College, Cedar Rapids, IA

• Scholarships and Recognition

• 2024 Dubuque Museum of Art 2024 Craft Invitational Finalist
• 2013 Dean’s List, Autumn of the same year
• 2013 Iowa Center For The Arts scholarship

• Exhibitions and Related Achievements

• 2024 Group exhibition Art Comes Alive at ADC Fine Art, Cincinnati, OH 
• 2024 Group exhibition Nuestras Raíces at DAAC Gallery, Dubuque, IA
• 2024 Group exhibition at the Iowa Latinx Festival, Des Moines, IA
• 2024 Group exhibition ALHAMDU | MUSLIM FUTURISM, at Fine Arts Center at Colorado College, Colorado Springs, CO
• 2024 Group exhibition 2024 Craft Invitational at the Dubuque Museum of Art, Dubuque, IA
• 2024 Participated in Sewa Ania, an art event focusing on the Yoeme Flower World, at Dotł'izhi, Iowa City, IA
• 2023 Group exhibition Nuestras Raíces at DAAC Gallery, Dubuque, IA
• 2018-2023 Developed a research-intensive project resulting in an elaborate sculpture and an accompanying monograph, both of which focus on Indigenous Flower Worlds’ spirituality and ritualism in Mesoamerica, Central Mexico and Eastern Iowa, Mexico and US
• 2021 Work featured at Art Domestique gallery for an annual Latinx festival, Washington, IA
• 2021 Installed a sculpture assemblage as part of Public Space One’s Art Gardens, Iowa City, IA
• 2019 Participated in an informal DIY music, art, and culinary event at a local chef’s house, Iowa City, IA
• 2019 Volunteered with Paula and Antonio Pinto for Shifting Grounds, a ceramics workshop for Hispanic youths, where I also informally presented my work, Ceramics Center, Cedar Rapids, IA
• 2018 Participated in a community event (focusing on people of color) in which a group of local artists and activists presented work and ideas, Iowa City Public Library, Iowa City, IA
• 2017 Group exhibition Mindful Art Collective at Public Space One, Iowa City, IA
• 2016 Solo exhibition at Cliché Patisserie, Iowa City, IA
• 2016 Group exhibitions, participated in several informal art and music shows at various local DIY music and art venues, Iowa City, IA
• 2015 Group exhibitions, participated in two informal art and music shows at a local DIY music and art venue, Iowa City, IA
• 2014 Solo exhibition In Xochitl, In Cuicatl at Legion Arts, Cedar Rapids, IA
• 2013 Group exhibition as a final project for an advanced art class at the University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA
• 2013 BFA Exhibition The Apprentice at University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA