Fierce Bodies

Fierce Bodies traces the many ways bodies carry stories of strength, vulnerability, and care across generations, regions, and artistic traditions. Organized around the poetry of Tucson-based Naomi Ortiz (Disabled / Mestize), this exhibition brings together creative voices from the Borderlands and Latin America to explore the deep connections between culture, identity, and wellbeing.​​

How bodies are valued by society has been influenced by broader cultural and historical forces. Fierce Bodies shifts attention to lived experiences of the body that resist singular and clinical definitions of repair. Featured works depict the body in varied forms: figures shaped by parenthood and pregnancy, individuals with invisible and visible disabilities, bodies marked by time, and the protection found in fashion. Grounded in TMA’s permanent collection, the exhibition includes select loans that broaden conversations around the materials artists use when embodying care. Together, these artworks consider how self-exploration, adaptation, and relationships inform representations and understandings of the body, positioning wellbeing as ever evolving.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website