> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://hyperallergic.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# Why I Removed Cesar Chavez From My Show
- URL: https://hyperallergic.com/why-i-removed-cesar-chavez-from-my-show/
- Published: 2026-05-22T10:00:12.000Z
- Updated: 2026-05-22T15:21:51.000Z
- Description: Elizabeth Ferrer writes candidly about making “a decision I could live with,” Roberto Lugo's ode to Puerto Rico, and a new Avedon documentary in Cannes.
- Author: Hyperallergic
- Tags: Daily Newsletter, Newsletter

In three and a half decades as a curator, Elizabeth Ferrer had never faced the need to remove an artwork from an opened exhibition. But a month after she inaugurated a major show of Chicano photography at The Cheech in California, which included a 1969 portrait of Cesar Chavez, horrific allegations of sexual assault against the labor leader hit the front pages of national newspapers. Today in *Hyperallergic*, Ferrer writes candidly about historical revision, a delicate curatorial calculus, and having to make “a decision I could live with.” 

If you're in New York, don't miss Roberto Lugo's new sculptural series, an ode to Puerto Rico rising joyfully from the urban meadow that is Madison Square Park. Staff Writer Isa Farfan spoke to the artist about his vision for the public artwork (and got some really cute photos with his parents). Cue Bad Bunny’s *NUEVAYoL*. 

Catch up on industry news with Art Movements, get smart with Required Reading, and read our review of a new Richard Avedon documentary that premiered at the Cannes Film Festival.

*—Valentina Di Liscia, senior editor*

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[![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/05/Rodri--guez--George-Delano--California-2-1-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/im-a-chicana-curator-this-is-why-i-removed-cesar-chavez-from-my-show/)

[ I’m a Chicana Curator. This Is Why I Removed Cesar Chavez From My Show ](https://hyperallergic.com/im-a-chicana-curator-this-is-why-i-removed-cesar-chavez-from-my-show/) 

The decision to remove a portrait of the labor leader from “Chicano Camera Culture” at The Cheech was not one I took lightly. | Elizabeth Ferrer 

[Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/im-a-chicana-curator-this-is-why-i-removed-cesar-chavez-from-my-show/) 

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SPONSORED 

[![CTA Image](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/05/art-science.jpeg)](https://hyperallergic.com/art-science-undisciplined-a-playbook-for-transformative-collaboration/) 

****Art-Science Undisciplined: A Playbook for Transformative Collaboration**

Artist Janani Balasubramanian and astrophysicist Natalie Gosnell reimagine collaboration through a values-based and joyfully undisciplined practice.

[Learn more ](https://hyperallergic.com/art-science-undisciplined-a-playbook-for-transformative-collaboration/) 

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## News

[![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/05/stonewall-1-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/stonewall-monument-named-among-most-endangered-sites-in-the-us/)

- The Stonewall National Monument was named one of [the most endangered places in the US](https://hyperallergic.com/stonewall-monument-named-among-most-endangered-sites-in-the-us/) in an annual list put out by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
- Roberto Lugo’s [newly unveiled sculptures in Madison Square Park](https://hyperallergic.com/robert-lugos-colossal-ode-to-puerto-rico-rises-in-madison-square-park/) are a majestic tributeto Puerto Rico, his parents, and notable figures like Bad Bunny.

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## From Our Critics

[![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/05/200126-1-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/a-new-richard-avedon-documentary-lets-him-down/)

[ A New Richard Avedon Documentary Lets Him Down ](https://hyperallergic.com/a-new-richard-avedon-documentary-lets-him-down/) 

Director Ron Howard is a gun for hire, and it shows in this conventional documentary about the famed photographer. | Dan Schindel 

[Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/a-new-richard-avedon-documentary-lets-him-down/) 

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## Community

[![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/05/Image--2348-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/required-reading-785/)

[ Required Reading ](https://hyperallergic.com/required-reading-785/) 

This week: a mysterious LA guerrilla artist, Whistler and gold paint, remembering Totó La Momposina, the art of photographing queer nightlife, AI agents turn Marxist, and more. 

[Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/required-reading-785/) 

[ Art Movements: Larry Gagosian Heads to the Big Screen ](https://hyperallergic.com/art-movements-larry-gagosian-heads-to-the-big-screen/) 

The enigmatic art dealer gets the documentary treatment, Pace gets the Brancusi Estate, the Louvre’s new architects, and other industry news. 

[Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/art-movements-larry-gagosian-heads-to-the-big-screen/) 

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## Member Comment

"Would like to see the Sarah Lucas sculpture bookended by an equally bulbous male balloon figure with comparably prominent anatomy, seated atop a toolbox."

Mary Lucier on [*Who’s That Nude Figure on a Washing Machine Outside the New Museum*](https://hyperallergic.com/whos-that-nude-figure-on-a-washing-machine-outside-the-new-museum/)[*?*](https://hyperallergic.com/whos-that-nude-figure-on-a-washing-machine-outside-the-new-museum/)

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## From the Archive

[![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/05/videodrome-monty-python-lede-1.gif)](https://hyperallergic.com/welcome-to-its-the-arts-with-monty-python/)

[ Welcome to “It’s the Arts,” with Monty Python ](https://hyperallergic.com/welcome-to-its-the-arts-with-monty-python/) 

It’s the Friday afternoon before Memorial Day Weekend, which means, if you’re anything like me, your brain is somewhere out the window. Why not indulge its wandering weirdness with some Monty Python? | Jillian Steinhauer 

[Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/welcome-to-its-the-arts-with-monty-python/)