"Latinas: The Spirit of California" Exhibit

 

In September, the California Museum for History, Women and the Arts unveiled its newest exhibit, titled “Latinas: The Spirit of California.” The exhibit features artifacts —such as author Isabel Allende’s typewriter and astronaut Ellen Ochoa’s flight suit— and other information related to the many Latinas who’ve shaped the history and culture of California over the years, from novelist Maria Ruiz de Burton to activist Dolores Huerta to actress Rita Moreno. The exhibit is on display through June 2006.

California First Lady Maria Shriver inaugurated the exhibit on Sept. 28 at a ceremony attended by exhibit sponsors and honorees.

Included in the exhibit is a tribute to LATINA Style Magazine founder Anna Maria Arias. Arias, who lost a seven-year battle with aplastic anemia on Oct. 1, 2001, was also the magazine’s editor and publisher until her death.

The exhibit features over 150 Latinas who have called California their home over the years as well as many of today’s influential California Latinas, including Ceja Vineyards President Amelia Moran Ceja, TV personality Chef Lala, Hispanic Scholarship Fund President Sara Martinez Tucker, and the president of Bank of America’s central Los Angeles market, Leticia Aguilar.