Queens, NY — April 1, 2026 — LiberArte is proud to announce the recipients of its Winter Cycle Liberation Through the Arts Grant: Monica Villarreal of Houston, Texas, and Diane Exavier of Brooklyn, New York. These grants provide direct funding to individual artists whose work advances racial, social, and climate justice through the arts, in alignment with LiberArte's mission to nurture artists co-creating joyful and abundant futures in harmony with each other and Mother Earth.

Monica Villarreal | Milpa Móvil

Monica Villarreal (she/her) is an interdisciplinary artist, cultural leader, and community organizer based in Houston, Texas. Her work bridges visual art, performance, and land-based practice to explore migration, environmental justice, identity, and ancestral memory through Indigenous knowledge systems and contemporary cultural strategies. She is the Founder of Xochipilli Collective, a land-based cultural initiative rooted in stewardship, ceremony, and regenerative practices. A Fellow of the Intercultural Leadership Institute, her work has been supported by the Center for Cultural Power, Anonymous Was A Woman, the Houston Arts Alliance, the BIPOC Arts Network and Fund, and The Idea Fund. She also serves on the boards of Women Healing and Empowering Women (WHEW) and Fresh Arts. In addition to her artistic practice, she serves on the Board of Directors for Women Healing and Empowering Women (WHEW) and the Board of Directors for Fresh Arts. She has also contributed to the broader arts ecosystem as a grant panelist and reviewer for the Houston Arts Alliance, BIPOC Arts Network and Fund, and The Idea Fund. Across all roles, Monica’s work centers reciprocity, long-term stewardship, and building cultural and environmental infrastructures that endure.

The Winter Cycle of the Liberation Through the Arts Grant will support Milpa Móvil, a mobile, solar-powered artist residency and cultural space developed by Xochipilli Collective in Houston's Settegast neighborhood. Housed within a repurposed RV, the project integrates renewable energy, rainwater harvesting, and land-based practices to create a self-sustaining environment for artistic creation, cultural transmission, and community engagement. Rooted in Indigenous knowledge systems, Milpa Móvil is designed to host artists, culture bearers, and knowledge keepers who engage with themes of land stewardship, food sovereignty, and climate resilience — sharing practices such as danza, traditional craft, storytelling, and ecological knowledge with the community. Once complete, it will serve as an off-grid, climate-resilient residency model and a replicable example of community-based environmental adaptation.

Milpa Móvil reflects Xochipilli Collective’s broader mission to create space for Indigenous-led cultural practices, intergenerational learning, and regenerative relationships with land. By combining art, infrastructure, and ceremony, the project offers a replicable model for small-scale, culturally grounded climate solutions.

Diane Exavier | In the Mouth of the Sun

Diane Exavier is a writer, educator, and storyteller working at the intersection of performance and poetry. She is the author of the poetry collection The Math of Saint Felix and the playwright of Bernarda's Daughters. Her work concerns itself with what she calls the four L's — love, loss, legacy, and land. Her plays and performances have been presented by Waterwell Productions, The New Group, National Black Theatre, BRIC Arts, and more. She has received commissions from Manhattan Theatre Club, The New Group, and the Lucille Lortel Theatre, and was named a 2023 NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellow in Poetry. She is currently managing editor of The 3rd Thing Press and lives and works on the unceded land of the Lenape people in Brooklyn, NY.

The LiberArte grant will support her new play, In the Mouth of the Sun, a new play about climate change told through the lens of winemaking. In Hermann, Missouri, the nation’s first viticulture capital, the Norton family runs Namesake Winery, a storied vineyard at the heart of Missouri wine country. As climate events and the national political landscape become more and more volatile, the family’s ability to run their business and protect their legacy comes under threat. Celebrating the work of Black farmers, while reflecting on themes of climate crisis, displacement, and structural oppression, In the Mouth of the Sun asks us to think about what we cultivate and who we grow with.

"These grants reflect our deep belief that artists are essential architects of the futures we seek. Monica and Diane are doing exactly the kind of visionary, community-rooted work that our Liberation Through the Arts Grant was created to uplift and sustain." — Yara Aly, Programs Manager

Spring Cycle Now Open — Apply by April 30

LiberArte is currently accepting applications for the Spring Cycle of the Liberation Through the Arts Grant. Applications are due April 30, 2026, with funds disbursed by July 1. Grants average approximately $500 and are open to individual artists whose work advances racial, social, and climate justice. Artists who were not selected in the Winter Cycle are encouraged to reapply. Learn more and apply here.

About LiberArte

LiberArte is a nonprofit arts organization dedicated to nurturing artists co-creating joyful and abundant futures in harmony with each other and Mother Earth. Through grants, residencies, education, and cultural programming, LiberArte advances racial, social, and climate justice through the arts, building affirming global community guided by creativity, innovation, and love in action.