This event is free and open to all.
Join Hesburgh Libraries Rare Books and Special Collections at Notre Dame (RBSC) in welcoming Quique Avilés for an artist-led dialogue on handmade publishing, migration, and collective authorship. His works are featured in RBSC’s spring 2027 exhibition, Folded Voices / Voces plegadas.
Avilés is an acclaimed Washington, D.C.-based poet, performer, filmmaker, and activist who has spent four decades addressing social injustices, immigration experiences, and racial inequalities. Displayed in the exhibition is Las Muertes Más Bellas del Mundo (The Most Beautiful Deaths in the World), a powerful poem written by the artist that serves as a structural foundation for his feature-length documentary of the same name, which explores how Salvadoran immigrants in Washington, D.C. use art to heal from the trauma of the Salvadoran Civil War; and his El Acordeón series of handmade accordion-style artist books that merge visual art, physical sculpture and poetry to map the emotional landscapes of migration and identity.
Folded Voices / Voces plegadas situates Latin American and diasporic accordion-form books within a long lineage of material memory keeping. By centering the works of contemporary artist-activists, integrating experiential events into the gallery, and extending that outreach to campus and community spaces, Folded Voices / Voces plegadas invites audiences to become co-creators through dialogue and collaborative art making.
Learn more about the exhibition and related events
About the Venue
The Hesburgh Library (main library) and its collections and services are open to the public. The Rare Books & Special Collections Exhibit Room is located on the main floor near the west entrance of the library and is open Monday - Friday 9am - 5pm. Visitors will be asked to leave the library by 8:00pm, when the building becomes available exclusively for the academic use of current Notre Dame students, faculty, and staff.
The library is designed to be physically accessible and includes step-free entrances, automatic doors, elevators with tactile input, accessible restrooms, and wheel accessible workstations and study rooms. For questions or more information about accessibility, including Assistive Technology and Alternative Formats, visit the library’s website or contact the Ask Us Desk at (574) 631-6258.
Visitors pay to park in designated Notre Dame lots during weekday business hours (Monday–Friday, 6:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.) using the ParkMobile app. After 4:00 p.m. on weekdays, all weekends except home football games, and during holiday closures observed by the University, there is no charge for parking. Designated accessible parking is available nearby for visitors with valid disability parking permits. For more information on parking and navigating campus, see Notre Dame’s visit page.
Funding & Support
This exhibition and its associated programming are made possible with funding from Hesburgh Libraries Rare Books and Special Collections. Workshop venues and staffing support provided by La Casa de Amistad and Notre Dame’s Department of Art, Art History, and Design.
Folded Voices / Voces plegadas is a partner program of the 2027 Notre Dame Arts Biennial and is supported with funding from the Notre Dame Arts Initiative.
Image: Quique Avilés. Photo courtesy of the artist.