”As immigrants who have both made their home in Houston, we decided to explore the depth of immigration by first breaking down our individual experiences, and then from these elements of our personal lives, illustrate the complexities of having to constantly assimilate to our adopted home, which often feels as if the very core of our identities are changing. Matter Rearranged highlights the fragmentation and fusion of our identities by embedding artificially generated images into the film. Each still image is uniquely edited and paired with location-based text prompts using DALL-E, an OpenAI system, to create alternate memories that reflect the struggle immigrants face in determining which parts of their identity are fabricated or not.”

Sophia Emille – poet Sophia Emille is a Filipino writer and performance poet. Born in Manila, raised in San Diego, CA, and currently living in Houston, TX, Sophia uses her love of writing as the vessel from which she can explore the ever-changing meaning of home, of belonging, and of self. One of the things Sophia loves most about Houston is its remarkable cultural diversity, which, when combined with that good ol’ Southern hospitality, makes the city truly a home unlike any other.

Eman Al-Zubeidi’s artistic body of work bridges the gap between Arab and Western cultures by uncovering similarities and shared strife between the two. Her work emphasizes the concept that identity is merely a fabricated construct. Through media arts and design, she merges two worlds that have entirely opposing sets of beliefs, traditions, and dialects, which are yet one and the same