In partnership with Desert X, Palm Springs Art Museum will have on view an installation with the remnants of Héctor Zamora’s performative action, Chimera.

The video and deflated metallic balloons reference four men walking along streets carrying sculptural bundles of metallic word balloons, which could be purchased by passersby on March 3 and 4 in Desert Hot Springs and Palm Springs.

The balloons take the form of 30 words chosen to conjure the idea of Chimera: an unrealizable dream or illusion fabricated by the mind. These concepts reflect on the phenomena of migration and the American dream, pursuits inescapably associated with promises that do not materialize for all.

Challenging us to consider those we might neglect or dismiss in our environment, this performance gives recognition to individuals who constitute a pillar of the American economy, immigrants, a population that the media and political groups consistently strive to keep invisible.