Margarita Cabrera

Cabrera's work aligns with others working with socially engaged art in community with a critical focus on social justice. Cabrera's work centers on social-political issues, including cultural identity, migration, violence, inclusivity, labor and empowerment. Cabrera creates sculptures made out of mediums ranging from steel, copper, wood, ceramics and fibers. Her work helps people define their place and voice in the social and cultural dialogues evolving in their communities. For her 2016 exhibit "The Space in Between" at the Desert Botanical Garden's Ottosen Gallery, Cabrera created a workshop for immigrants from different Latino communities to build sculptures of native desert plants from the Southwestern United States. Using traditional Mexican sewing and embroidery techniques, Cabrera’s workshop participants stitched their stories of immigration, community and hardship into the fabric of discarded U.S. Border Patrol uniforms. Cabrera was selected as the Texas Artist of the Year in 2019 and unveiled her public art community sculpture "Arbol de la Vida: Memorias y Voces de la Tierra" in San Antonio, Texas.