Adriana Yadira Gallego

Adriana Yadira Gallego (born 1974) is a Chicana painter, public artist, and arts administrator. Her focus is on feminism and civil rights.

Adriana discusses her perspective on the treatment of individuals at the U.S.-Mexico border, expressing frustration with the way they are often labeled as "wetbacks," "foreigners," "undocumented," and "bean-eaters" before being recognized as human beings. She highlights instances where people justify violence, including the beating and assault of undocumented individuals, leading her to question the nature of the border phenomenon. She returned to Tucson to work for the Arizona Commission on the Arts as a director of strategic initiative before moving to San Antonio, Texas, where she worked at the National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures as the group's CEO for nearly a decade. The painting shoes a visual of three beautifully drawn hands intertwined with barbered wire. The painting shows the three hands successively moving through the wire. The art piece is part of a bigger story, Gallegos' father shared with her the horrifying stories of migrants' damaging and harming their hands while trying to cross the border. Gallego, through her seven acrylic art pieces told the story of what it is like for migrants to embark on the long journey of crossing the border.

Accomplishments In 1997, Gallego was the youngest recipient of the Ford Foundation's Siqueiros-Pollock Binational Award. Gallego was one of a few artists featured in a year-long exhibition at the Tucson Museum of Art. Gallego has received numerous tributes and exhibits of her work in museums, galleries, and cultural centers throughout the United States, Mexico, and Puerto Rico. Gallego is a founding member of Raices Taller 222 Gallery and Workshop