Local artist Alberto Aguilar often uses cognates—or as he describes them, “words that can be read in English and in Spanish simultaneously”—in his work. He knew he wanted to incorporate them when the National Museum of Mexican Art asked him to participate in its 30th anniversary exhibition, “Memoria Presente: An Artistic Journey.” One of his contributions is the first work visitors encounter, a window sign that reads PORTAL in bright red letters above the entrance. It’s a word that takes you places: into another dimension, another world, another time. With the White House planning to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and increasing raids in immigrant communities—one of which resulted in a federal agent shooting a man in Belmont Cragin last week—entering a space where those communities are celebrated can indeed feel like being transported to a different reality.

Some of the strongest pieces are mixed- media installations. In Suffocated From the Inside (Party Chain) v2, Ivan Lozano pays tribute to the murdered son of the poet Javier Sicilia. Lozano downloaded and printed images of drug-cartel murder victims from the Internet, transferred them onto packing tape, and then formed them into paper chains like the ones you find in an elementary school classroom. Installed in a corner, the chains are lit by a lightbulb underneath them; a photo of a sunset adorns the wall. Yvette Mayorga’s Make America Sweet Again, a sugar-coated critique of the American dream, is inspired by her family’s work in the confectionery industry: pink and blue faux frosting on the walls is shaped into cakes and American flags.

There’s another piece by Aguilar above the exit of “Memoria Presente”: Titled Éxito, it’s a sign that reads TERMINAL made of painted butcher paper, black streamers, and black masking tape. Another cognate, but this one has darker connotations. Yet the word éxito suggests an alternate meaning, “more like celebration or wishing someone good luck,” Aguilar says. “I like to do this thing where I just am factual, like I just state facts,” he continues. “I hope sometimes that in doing that, that poetry sort of naturally emerges, rather than me forcing it.”

Through 8/13: Tue-Sun, 10 AM-5 PM National Museum of Mexican Art 1852 W. 19th 312-738-1503nationalmuseumofmexicanart.org Free