Freeborn County Arts Initiative

07/25/2026

🎨 What would you paint if you finally let yourself cry?

That's the question behind Smile Now, Cry Later, a solo exhibition by Siriaco "Siricasso" Garcia, on view now through August 29 at the Arts Initiative Gallery.

📅 On view now – August 29, 2026
Closing reception: 1–3pm, August 29
📍 Arts Initiative Gallery, 224 S Broadway Ave, Albert Lea, MN

👨‍🎨 About the artist
Siriaco Garcia is a muralist, screenprinter, event organizer, afterschool art teacher, and father based in Huxley, Iowa. He's painted more than 40 murals across central Iowa, known for the bold outlines and vibrant backdrops that give his figures such a strong presence. He also hosts art events that give emerging artists a place to show their work and build the confidence to put it in front of an audience, bringing art, and other artists, into the communities he works in.

🖼️ About the show
Smile Now, Cry Later takes its name from a phrase Garcia grew up with, one that taught him to perform okay-ness instead of feel what he was actually feeling. The paintings come straight from his own childhood journals: memories of a parent's deportation, of systems that criminalize addiction and immigration, of learning far too young how to smile through pain instead of react to it.

Now a father himself, Garcia is revisiting those wounds because his own kids are starting to ask questions he isn't ready to answer yet. Working in acrylic, colored pencil, paint marker, and watercolor, this show is him finally doing what the title promises, on canvas instead of in silence.

SMILE NOW, CRY LATER
Solo exhibition by Siriaco "Siricasso" Garcia
On view now through August 29, 2026
Closing reception: 1–3pm, August 29
Arts Initiative Gallery, 224 S Broadway Ave, Albert Lea, MN

07/10/2026

How do you portray incredible pain and loss?

Through his work, Siriaco Garcia addresses the Latino experience in the Midwest; drugs and controlled substances taking over daily life, families being torn apart from abductions and deportations, and the unique resilience that has developed in Hispanic populations in the Midwest. Describing his painting "Soon Enough" that depicts a weeping Chicano man holding the woman he loves, Garcia says,

"In the distance, a hand reaches upward toward Virgin Mary, a symbol of the faith he turned to in quiet moments. She represents the prayers spoken late at night. The promises to change, to do better, to leave behind the life that was slowly destroying everything around him. Family and community had tried to guide him, to warn him, to pull him back. They saw what he could not see."

"Soon Enough" and other works like it will be on view for our next show:

SMILE NOW, CRY LATER
a solo exhibition at the Freeborn County Arts Initiative featuring work by artist and mentor Siriaco Garcia

Starting this Saturday, July 11 through August 29, come and experience these works in person, feel the emotion dripping from each canvas, and immerse yourself in these vibrant and dynamic paintings while reading the stories that go along them.

🎭 SMILE NOW, CRY LATER, solo exhibition by Siriaco Garcia
📍 224 S Broadway Ave, Albert Lea
🗓️ July 11 – August 29, 2026
🥂 Closing reception on August 29 from 1 - 3 pm

03/21/2026

We are open!

Come and experience our newest exhibition today. Feel the passion, process the grief, and learn more about what your neighbors have been making in the wake of the 2026 ICE raids.

Gallery open from 1-4 pm at 224 S Broadway.

03/20/2026

We Will Not Be Silenced.

We never wanted to have to say this, but our community deserves honesty about what has happened since DISSENT opened a week ago.

In the days since the exhibition began, we have received credible threats of violence and experienced an attempted break-in at the gallery. The intent was clear: to intimidate us, silence our neighbors, and shut down this exhibition.

DISSENT echoes the voices of our community. It exists to hold space for grief, truth, and free expression, and to share the experiences, fears, and concerns of our neighbors through art. We are exercising our right to free speech, and acts of intimidation like this seek to stifle First Amendment freedoms that belong to all of us.

We want to publicly thank the Albert Lea Police Department for its swift cooperation and response. Your professionalism and support have been immediate and meaningful.

We are also deeply grateful to every neighbor who packed the house last night for Unquiet Night. Your presence, your voices, your courage, and your solidarity filled the gallery and reminded us exactly why this work matters.

We will not back down.
We will not be silent.

We will continue supporting our neighbors, honoring their grief, and creating space for honest conversation through art.

We invite the public to visit DISSENT, engage the work, and take part in thoughtful, civil community conversation. This exhibition was created to make space for reflection, discussion, and the honest exchange of ideas.

DISSENT remains open and free to the public through April 25.

This gallery is, and will remain, a place for reflection, grief, and community dialogue.

Thank you for standing with us, Albert Lea.

-Elisha Marin
Director, Arts Initiative

03/16/2026

Minnesotans killed by masked agents.

Our gallery playlist is curated to complement the show, and today’s feautured song is “Pretti/Good” by Dan Rodriguez.

This song was written specifically for Renée Good and Alex Pretti — the two Minnesotans at the heart of our memorial shrine. Dan Rodriguez (a Minnesota singer-songwriter whose own family story includes Mexican immigrant roots) turned his grief and anger into this track after their deaths.
In the gallery, their photos hang above a bowl of fallen flowers while fresh ones slowly wilt and dry over the weeks. It’s our way of refusing to let that grief be rushed or forgotten.

This song does the same thing with music.

What hits you hardest when you hear it — the title, the lyrics, or the fact that it was written for them?
Drop your thoughts below. We read every single comment.

DISSENT is open now through April 25
Freeborn County Arts Initiative
224 S. Broadway Ave, Albert Lea
Thursday–Saturday 1–4 pm or by appointment
Always free

Unquiet Night Open Mic
This Thursday, March 19 • 7–8 pm
Safe space to bring your grief, your anger, your voice — or just come listen.

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

03/15/2026

“Illegal” is a dehumanizing term. Period.

Our gallery playlist is curated to complement the show, and today’s spotlight song is the live version of “Deportee (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos)” by Woody Guthrie, covered here by Johnny Cash and Johnny Rodriguez.

It’s about what happened in January 1948: a plane carrying 28 Mexican Bracero (farmhand) workers crashed in Los Gatos Canyon, California. These people had spent months working hard, picking the crops that fed American families. Their contracts were up, so they were rounded up and deported to Mexico.

All 32 people died. The four American crew members got named in the papers and proper burials. The 28 Mexican workers? The news just called them “deportees.” No names. No families notified. Their bodies were dumped in a mass grave in Fresno marked only “28 Mexican citizens.” They were not acknowledged as fellow humans, fellow neighbors.

That same dehumanizing language — “illegals,” “deportees,” “them” — is still being used right now to justify tearing families apart.

This song refuses to let us forget. It’s playing in the gallery during DISSENT for a reason. How little has changed in 77 years?

DISSENT is open now through April 25
Freeborn County Arts Initiative
224 S. Broadway Ave, Albert Lea
Thursday–Saturday 1–4 pm or by appointment
Always free

Unquiet Night Open Mic
This Thursday, March 19 • 7–8 pm
Safe space to bring a song, your voice, your anger, your grief — or just come listen.

Johnny Cash and Johnny Rodriguez sing a Woody Guthrie classic, "Deportee." Today in the United States the song is still just as relevant as it was when this...

03/15/2026

What if the things we once promised ourselves are quietly dying right in front of us?

Wende Taylor’s poem, “The Death of Things We Once Promised,” lays it bare: the slow, silent erosion of civil rights, due process, kindness, science, facts, free speech, compassion, bodily autonomy, democracy, trust, freedom… and the simplest command: “Love thy neighbor.”

No funeral, no moment of silence. Just a turning away. And in the empty space left behind: chemicals in our soil and food, liars in power, families ripped apart, children harmed, money worshipped above working hands, draft dodgers calling themselves brave, malignant pride dressed up as strength.

And we’re told this is greatness.

This poem is part of DISSENT — one voice among dozens of our Minnesotan neighbors grappling with grief, moral reckoning, and what it means to hold onto (or mourn) the promises we made to each other.

Come sit with it. Bring your own thoughts, questions, anger, hope — whatever’s weighing on you.

The Unquiet Night Open Mic is this
Thursday, March 19
7–8 pm at the Freeborn County Arts Initiative
224 S. Broadway Ave, Albert Lea

A safe, respectful space to share a poem, song, spoken word, or just listen. No judgment. All voices belong here — that’s the whole point.

DISSENT runs through April 25
Thursday–Saturday 1–4 pm or by appointment
Always free

What’s one promise or value from the poem that hits hardest for you right now? Drop it in the comments and let’s have a civil discussion.

03/14/2026

Alex Pretti was gunned down in the street by masked federal agents.

This painting is how Christina Harp answered that loss. She writes:

"When I was approached about creating a piece for this show, an immediate image came to mind: the juxtaposition of a dove something that symbolizes peace — and bullet wounds.
I had been feeling the specific and visceral collective grief of the public seeing Alex Pretti gunned down on the street for trying to protect others.
The dove in the painting has 10 gunshots, mirroring the number of times Alex was shot. This image was important to get on canvas. It tells the story of a man who laid down his own life fighting for others.
I hope those who see it are able to tap into the power of our collective grief — to know that we are in this thing together… and to remember Alex Pretti."

That’s what Christina wrote about “For Alex”. The painting now hangs in DISSENT.

You’ll see it on the wall: a pure white dove soaring against deep blue, olive branch in its beak, ten red bullet wounds bleeding down its wings. A quiet but powerful tribute to Alex Pretti, the Minneapolis VA ICU nurse who gave everything.

Christina is a painter and fabric designer who came to art later in life. Her work is full of vibrant color, texture, and quiet rebellion — inspired by nature’s wild side and the beauty in imperfection. She loves making creativity feel possible and welcoming for everyone.

You can see more of her beautiful work at ChristinaHarp.us.

This is just one of dozens of voices from artists responding to what’s happening in our state right now.
Come stand in front of it yourself. Let it sit with you.

DISSENT is open now through April 25
Freeborn County Arts Initiative
224 S. Broadway Ave, Albert Lea
Thursday–Saturday 1–4 pm or by appointment
Always free.

Unquiet Night Open Mic
This Thursday, March 19 at 7 pm
A safe space to share your voice or simply listen.

Neighbors, doors are wide open. We’d love to have you here.

03/14/2026

We’re grateful and excited — the Albert Lea Tribune just covered DISSENT!

The paper captured exactly what this show is about: art that meets our community right where we are, while the moment is still fresh.

Here are a few lines from the story:
“I curated this exhibition because I’m tired of watching injustice happen and pretending it’s normal… I want people to feel something when they see it and ask themselves what side of silence or dissent they’re on.” — Wende Taylor

“I would encourage the community to come regardless of what side of the issues you fall on. This is a safe and structured place to share your opinion, voice your First Amendment rights and talk about the trauma that our state has experienced recently.” -Elisha Marin

If you haven’t seen the full article yet, click the link below.

Come experience the show for yourself.
DISSENT is open through April 25
224 S. Broadway Ave, Albert Lea
Thurs–Sat 1–4 pm or by appointment
Always free

Unquiet Night Open Mic
March 19th, 2026 from 7–8 pm
A safe space to speak, sing, listen, or just sit with it all. All voices welcome.

See you at the gallery, neighbors. Thank you, Ayanna and the Tribune, for shining a light on local art that matters.

The Freeborn County Arts Initiative on Thursday opened its latest mixed media exhibit, “Dissent,” which focuses on unrest, resistance, grief and other emotions tied to recent events in Minnesota, specifically Operation Metro Surge and immigration enforcement.