In November 2024, Francis Estrada—the NBMAA’s Senior Manager for Community Engagement and Family Programs—received one of the top awards for the 2024 International Contest for Minority Artists (from the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights) along with four other artists. They were flown to Geneva, Switzerland, for the Awards Ceremony, exhibition, and a week of various workshops. The contest celebrates minority artists who have made significant contributions to raise awareness, inspire action, and foster deeper understanding of human rights across diverse communities through their art.

As one of his many roles at the NBMAA, Francis plans our Access for All Community Days, which successfully bring in hundreds of visitors each month to enjoy free admission, create art, connect to local artists and organizations, and celebrate the diversity of the greater New Britain community. We asked Francis to share with us the inspiration behind his art, his experience being selected for this award, and how his personal artistic perspective impacts his career as an art educator.

How would you describe your art?

Subject-matter wise, I’ve always been interested in history and how collective memories are made. I use and look at art as a way of understanding, not just cultures and people, but also time periods and historic events. I started making serious artwork when I first moved to the U.S., and I was trying to figure out the idea of living in a country where there was a separation between church and state. Growing up in the Philippines, it was a very, very Catholic country (80% Roman Catholic because of the Spanish colonization). Each aspect of your life is affected by the church.

When I moved to the U.S., I started studying and painting, and I started thinking, “The church doesn’t have as much control of me. Why is that?” So, I started playing around with iconography, and I began creating new icons based on my experiences.

And then I kind of switched in 2009 when I applied for dual citizenship. I wanted to keep my Philippine citizenship but also have American citizenship. That’s when I started thinking, “What does it mean to be Filipino-American? And what do we know about Filipino-American history?” I started applying for different research grants, going into different ways that Filipinos have been represented in institutions in the U.S.—either universities, museum collections, and archives.

I began researching the 1904 World’s Fair, where there was basically a human zoo, a Philippine Village, in St. Louis. In 1905, in Coney Island, there were actually 50 Filipinos that were displayed in Luna Park as a human zoo that eventually traveled along the U.S.

And then I started looking into the different contributions that Filipinos and Filipino Americans have made through history in the building of this nation, and a lot of it isn’t recorded.

So, with the artwork that I do, I keep it kind of vague, and I keep pulling figural images that kind of have this universal theme of—I wouldn’t say suffering—but suffering kind of turned into liberation. People who see it can relate to it somehow, but the context isn’t necessarily full, so they have to basically fill in the missing spots. That being said, the artwork that I make is based on my perceptions, and I try to see if there’s a way I can make it connect to other people who aren’t necessarily Filipino or American.

As for materials, I started with painting first and then drawing. But then I started thinking about how movement is also part of culture, so I began creating more performative pieces. And as I looked at even more archives and more Museum anthropological collections, I started creating objects. So now at this point, it’s kind of a mix and match of different materials, depending on the piece.

What was the experience like of going to the awards ceremony?

For lack of better words, it was pretty amazing and surreal. Because when I got there, I didn't know who the other awardees were. We met for the first time in Geneva, Switzerland, for the awards, which happened around Thanksgiving weekend. There were eight of us all together. Seeing all these international artists coming together and seeing the work that they do, and me being part of it, made me think “Wow, here I am amongst not just very talented people but people who are doing something for their communities, within their communities, through art.”

They organized a week of workshops for us to understand what the U.N Minority Rights Group does, what the Office of the High Chair of Human Rights does, and how art plays a role in celebrating diversity, communities, and culture. I actually got a chance to speak on one of the panels called Overcoming Obstacles to Minority and Cultural Expression. I talked about what role art plays in either celebrating culture or sharing about different communities and cultures that are out there. How can art either push for not necessarily just recognition or exposure, but how can it be used as an advocacy for human rights? They wanted me to talk about how my artwork is able to push for cultural expression, but also how to use art within education spaces to teach about other cultures and to teach about equality.

How does your experience as an artist connect with your work as an art educator here at the NBMAA?

My background is in Fine Arts—painting, drawing, and printmaking. It wasn’t until about 15 years ago that I started working in different non-profit organizations using art education to push for different social practice issues and social justice issues. How can art be used to expose issues that are out there, how can it be used for communication, and how can it be used for even just self-betterment?

I’ve always thought that the artwork I do is based on research, based on inequalities from Colonial periods. Then I create workshops following universal themes, so it doesn’t have to be specifically about Filipino American history, Filipino Spanish history, or Filipino Colonial history. Instead, it can be about the idea of who has power, who doesn’t have power, how does that play against each other, and how can you use art to address that and think about ways of solving problems?

Museums, in general, have a colonial history and a very storied past. Many people come from backgrounds that are not even just not represented, but even sometimes not welcome in museums. My goal has always been to show that we do belong in these spaces, and we do have voices that we can share in these spaces. So, for programs, I think about how I can bring in other people who feel like they don’t necessarily belong in museums.

Specifically for the NBMAA, that means asking what does American art mean? Who is American? And how can we present that?

Check out Francis’ art:

Instagram: @francisestrada1 | Website: francisestrada.com