MinerAlert
MinerAlert
August 23, 2021 - February 12, 2022
In 2016, the UTEP Theater Department received a large donation of kimonos, accessories, and performance videos that belonged to Katsuko "Kitty" Huntley. Mrs. Huntley, who grew up in Japan, married an American G.I., immigrated to the United States in 1952, and eventually settled in El Paso. While we know little about Mrs. Huntley and how she acquired these objects, this unexpected inheritance gives us a glimpse into a previously unknown life. In her videos, Kitty appears in kimono with her dance group. Their dance performances tell stories from a home across the world. We can speculate that her collection of kimonos and the dances that she performed provided a connection to Japan, her life prior to immigrating to the United States, and the Japanese- American community here in El Paso. It was this story that inspired us to title the exhibit Ties to Home: The Kimonos of Kitty Huntley.
