ARTIST(A)

Alvaro Alvarez is a binational architectural artist based in San Ysidro, California. He works primarily with ink, paper, and abandoned or unfinished materials, turning them into visual stories that explore place, identity, and rebirth. His practice combines architectural representation, memory, and the narratives of the San Diego - Tijuana border.

Alvarez studied architecture at Cornell University and spent years designing major projects such as the 15 Hudson Yards tower in New York City and the Kanai EDITION Hotel in Riviera Maya. This background in hospitality storytelling, urban form, and spatial psychology shapes both the structural precision and emotional resonance of his artwork, influenced significantly by his time studying under San Diego artist Pia Stern.

His work has been exhibited at the San Diego Museum of Art, Balboa Park’s World Design Capital Pavilion, the Oceanside Museum of Art, the San Diego International Airport, the Tijuana Triennial at CECUT, the Baja California State Museum CEART Rosarito, Vórtice Gallery, PHES Gallery, the Tijuana City Museum (IMAC), and BLK BOX Gallery.

Alvarez’s work spans imagined structures, abstract forms, portraits, and sculpture, all united by a deep connection to architecture, not only as form but as a theme that shapes how people feel, remember, and perceive the world around them. His recent projects include “Imperfect Boundaries,” which explores the physical and psychological limits of the Tijuana - San Diego border; “46 Renacimientos,” forty-six textural paper sculptures of abandoned Baja California buildings; “AbandonmenTissues,” which transforms discarded regional materials into new visual meaning; and his current series, “Architectural Stories,” which includes detailed drawings and paintings imagining alternative built environments.

Currently, Alvarez continues creating artwork and actively participates in the creative community of the border region. He directs the Art and Architecture Council at the Bustamante Business Center and served as Arts & Architecture Director for San Diego - Tijuana Sister Cities International.

Statement on Cornell University’s 2024 Sexual Assault Case

My heart and support go out to Jane Doe, the brave former Cornell student who has shared surviving a horrific sexual assault on campus and who has since endured a long and difficult process as she sought help, accountability, and justice. I am also deeply grateful to The Cornell Daily Sun and its student journalists for their persistent reporting and for continuing to bring this case, and the important questions surrounding it, to the attention of the Cornell community and the broader public.

Painfully, this case demonstrates how sexual violence remains a serious problem at Cornell and at universities throughout our country. It is disappointing that it has taken a lawsuit, intense media attention, and public pressure to produce renewed attention of what happened and how the institutions responsible for protecting students responded. Whether meaningful change follows should ultimately be demonstrated through actions and meaningful results; not administrative statements.

Ezra Cornell envisioned “an institution where any person can find instruction in any study.” For that promise to mean anything, violence among students cannot be normalized as part of college life. When misconduct is substantiated through a fair process, universities must be prepared to impose serious consequences, and when the evidence warrants criminal investigation, law enforcement and prosecutors must pursue it with equal seriousness. Sexual assault does not become less serious because it occurs on a college campus.

There is also a responsibility that belongs to students themselves. Cornell must teach its students - particularly young men - not only about consent, but about their responsibility toward one another. When someone appears vulnerable, incapacitated, or in danger, bystanders should not simply stand by. They should know how to intervene safely, seek help, and refuse to become passive participants in another person’s harm.

I hope this case becomes an occasion for serious institutional transformation. The prevalence of sexual violence at Cornell has been documented and discussed for many years, yet the problem persists. Student organizations such as The Cornell Daily Sun and the Student Assembly have an important role to play in asking difficult questions, insisting upon transparency, strengthening prevention, and helping the administration and Board of Trustees understand where change is still necessary, and where accountability must be followed through with action.

Above all, I also hope Jane Doe is surrounded by the medical, emotional, and legal support she needs as this new phase of the case unfolds.

It is clear that Cornell University has failed. It has failed Jane Doe. It has failed to live up to Ezra Cornell’s vision. And it has failed to protect members of its own community from danger.

As Cornellians, we have a responsibility to demand better from our institution.

With love and support,

Alvaro Alvarez
Cornell Class of 2015

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Declaración sobre el caso de agresión sexual de 2024 en la Universidad de Cornell

Mi corazón y mi apoyo están con Jane Doe, la valiente exalumna de Cornell que ha relatado haber sobrevivido a una terrible agresión sexual en el campus y que, desde entonces, ha atravesado un largo y difícil proceso mientras buscaba ayuda, rendición de cuentas y justicia. También estoy profundamente agradecido con The Cornell Daily Sun y sus periodistas estudiantiles por su cobertura persistente y por continuar llevando este caso, así como las importantes preguntas que lo rodean, a la atención de la comunidad de Cornell y del público en general.

Dolorosamente, este caso demuestra que la violencia sexual continúa siendo un grave problema en Cornell y en universidades de todo Estados Unidos. Es decepcionante que haya sido necesaria una demanda legal, una intensa atención mediática, e incesable presión pública para generar una renovada atención sobre lo ocurrido y sobre la manera en que respondieron las instituciones responsables de proteger a los estudiantes. Un verdadero cambio significativo deberá demostrarse mediante acciones y resultados concretos; no solo con declaraciones administrativas.

Ezra Cornell imaginó “una institución donde cualquier persona pueda encontrar instrucción en cualquier estudio”. Para que esa promesa tenga verdadero significado, la violencia entre estudiantes no puede normalizarse como parte de la vida universitaria. Cuando una conducta indebida se demuestra mediante un proceso, las universidades deben estar preparadas para imponer consecuencias serias; y cuando la evidencia justifica una investigación penal, las autoridades y los fiscales deben proceder con la misma seriedad. Una agresión sexual no se vuelve menos grave por ocurrir dentro de un campus universitario.

También existe una responsabilidad que corresponde a los propios estudiantes. Cornell debe enseñar a sus estudiantes - particularmente a los hombres jóvenes - no solamente sobre el consentimiento, sino también sobre la responsabilidad que tienen los unos hacia los otros. Cuando una persona parece vulnerable, incapacitada o en peligro, quienes están presentes no deben simplemente quedarse observando. Deben saber cómo intervenir de manera segura, buscar ayuda, y negarse a convertirse en participantes pasivos del daño hacia otra persona.

Espero que este caso se convierta en una oportunidad para una seria transformación institucional. La prevalencia de la violencia sexual en Cornell ha sido documentada y conversada durante muchos años y, sin embargo, el problema persiste. Organizaciones estudiantiles como The Cornell Daily Sun y la Student Assembly tienen un papel importante que desempeñar al formular preguntas difíciles, exigir transparencia, fortalecer la prevención y ayudar a la administración y al Board of Trustees a comprender dónde sigue siendo necesario el cambio y dónde la rendición de cuentas debe traducirse en acciones concretas.

Por encima de todo, espero que Jane Doe esté rodeada del apoyo médico, emocional y legal que necesita mientras se desarrolla esta nueva etapa del caso.

Es claro que la Universidad de Cornell ha fallado. Le ha fallado a Jane Doe. Ha fallado en estar a la altura de la visión de Ezra Cornell. Y ha fallado en proteger del peligro a miembros de su propia comunidad.

Como miembros de la comunidad de Cornell, tenemos la responsabilidad de exigir más de nuestra institución.

Con amor y apoyo,

Alvaro Alvarez
Generación Cornell 2015