52 Windows – An Evening of Art is the annual art auction and gala hosted by Columbia’s own Mental Illness Recovery Center, Inc. (Mirci). Jasper has been proud to share the wonderous work that both Mirci and the artists invited to participate in the gala have done, and we are excited to share with our readers the great artists featured this year. The gala is from 6 – 9 p.m. on May 9, 2024, at 701 Whaley. This week, we’re talking about another featured 52 Windows artist, Daniel Flores.
Daniel Flores is a trans artist and community organizer. He was born in Mexico and has lived in South Carolina for the past 21 years. As a DACA recipient and son of two immigrant parents, he generally focuses his art and organizing on Latinx/immigrant and LGBTQ+ issues; often mixing the two in a style called Artivism. His artistic career began at age 17 with his short film, 𝘍𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘰𝘧 𝘕𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦, which was inspired by his experience as a trans man. This film was screened at the 2016 Indie Grits Film Festival. In 2017, he designed La Jotería, a queer spin on la Lotería, which was featured in 𝘙𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘻𝘤𝘭𝘢. Other works include realizing the first Queer Latinx float at South Carolina Pride 2018, where he had the privilege of serving as Grand Marshal of the Parade; Las Casitas, an installation honoring children and trans Latinx women who were murdered by ICE; and most recently, Pequeños Alebrijes, a mural in which he collaborated with 18 immigrant, ESOL elementary school students. Currently, he is working on a new Artivism piece that will bring to light transphobia, along with many other issues facing our communities.
Interested in attending the 52 Windows Gala? Tickets are available through the MIRCI website. Early bird pricing for individual and couple tickets is enacted through April 17.