Christina Delgado

"An Offering" is 1 of 15 digital images from the photo series entitled, "Relics of My Father" an evolving photography & culture project Christina Delgado uses as a form of art therapy after losing her father suddenly in 2013. The hands holding the objects belong to her Tia Evelyn who is her father's sister. The objects include her father's gold & diamond nameplate, a small Buddha statue, and a gold and enamel pendant of the Virgin Mary & Jesus which belonged to her grandmother, her father's mother. The nameplate signifies 80's & 90's culture in NYC and offers a glimpse of Delgado's father's name. The Buddha represents wealth, peace, and a sense of humility. The pendant is a representation of history and colonial influence on Latinx culture.

Tola's Room is a Puerto Rican home museum & culture space located in Northeast Baltimore. Its inception was Delgado's attempt to share the wealth of her culture and life experience, along with the connections she's made throughout her therapeutic journey after losing her father in 2013. In 2022, Delgado curated the entire home museum for its second exhibition entitled, "A Series of Love Letters." The room she selected to pay homage to her father, was once her daughter’s bedroom or "Tola's Room". She envisioned an office space or “man cave” that her father might have if he were alive. Like The Shrine, her design includes “relics” belonging to her father, along with some objects and pictures of her own and of her daughter, Omotola. This space also includes 4 large images from the "Relics of My Father" series and a short film projection created by Delgado entitled, "Daddy, A Love Letter." The film is a collection of family videos mostly of Tola’s growth sharing with her father, moments of reflection that have passed since his death. It is projected on an image entitled, "Trago" of the last Bacardi bottle he drank from, positioned on the last chair he sat.

Relics of My Father is an evolving photography & culture project Christina Delgado uses as a form of art therapy after losing her father suddenly in 2013. Having to sort through all the “relics” he left behind was like opening a time capsule, memories of the past flooding through her mind. She learned so much about him and she also learned much about herself. Her father's death in essence gave Christina life, allowing her confidence, pride, and a renewed perspective into her own cultural experience, her lineage, and what being a Puerto Rican from NYC really means. La Bandera is 1 of 10 from the photography series Delgado started in 2014. Her work revolves around a sense of self and identity. It displays a passion and pride for identity in family and homeplace. It connects ways in which home, place, and family can be sights of pain & trauma but ultimately sights of healing and freedom.

Relics of My Father is an evolving photography & culture project Christina Delgado uses as a form of art therapy after losing her father suddenly in 2013. Having to sort through all the “relics” he left behind was like opening a time capsule, memories of the past flooding through her mind. She learned so much about him and she also learned much about herself. Her father's death in essence gave Christina life, allowing her confidence, pride, and a renewed perspective into her own cultural experience, her lineage, and what being a Puerto Rican from NYC really means. Brooklyn Bridge is 1 of 10 from the photography series Delgado started in 2014. Her work revolves around a sense of self and identity. It displays a passion and pride for identity in family and homeplace. It connects ways in which home, place, and family can be sights of pain & trauma but ultimately sights of healing and freedom.

Through the Neighborhood Design Center’s Build Together Designer-in-Residence Program, artist Christina Delgado led a summer-long public space intervention for the Johnston Square neighborhood. This project was done in partnership with Rebuild Johnston Square neighborhood organization. The Johnston Square Gateway Project commemorates efforts to enliven the East Biddle St. bridge located in the Johnston Square neighborhood at 300 E Biddle Street between Fallsway and Barclay. Through a public mural and activation, the project bridges what has historically been a dividing line between Johnston Square and Midtown and anticipates the future park and development along East Biddle Street as part of the Johnston Square 2020 Vision Plan. The mural design was based on a new branding concept for Johnston Square created by Glenn Dellon. Muralist Pagie Orpin recreated and painted the design as the backdrop for black and white images of people and places taken by Delgado. Smaller images were shared by countless residents of the Johnston Square community present and past. The mural and photo exhibition honor the people who have made Johnston Square a place of community, and they both represent and envision a new future for the neighborhood. As the Johnston Square neighborhood rapidly changes, it is more critical than ever that we honor and highlight its shared history.

Through the Neighborhood Design Center’s Build Together Designer-in-Residence Program, artist Christina Delgado led a summer-long public space intervention for the Johnston Square neighborhood. This project was done in partnership with Rebuild Johnston Square neighborhood organization. The Johnston Square Gateway Project commemorates efforts to enliven the East Biddle St. bridge located in the Johnston Square neighborhood at 300 E Biddle Street between Fallsway and Barclay. Through a public mural and activation, the project bridges what has historically been a dividing line between Johnston Square and Midtown and anticipates the future park and development along East Biddle Street as part of the Johnston Square 2020 Vision Plan. The mural design was based on a new branding concept for Johnston Square created by Glenn Dellon. Muralist Pagie Orpin recreated and painted the design as the backdrop for black and white images of people and places taken by Delgado. Smaller images were shared by countless residents of the Johnston Square community present and past. The mural and photo exhibition honor the people who have made Johnston Square a place of community, and they both represent and envision a new future for the neighborhood. As the Johnston Square neighborhood rapidly changes, it is more critical than ever that we honor and highlight its shared history.