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From September 24 to October 22, UBC Artivism engages through the theme Queering the Self, which provides space for underrepresented voices from our community and beyond to explore the intersections of their identity through the lens of the digital and we sat down for a convo about the Festival with Artistic Director/Producer Bianca Santana. This annual festival highlights stories of resilience and student activist art that challenges dominant narratives through live performances, poetry, music and more. There’s something for everyone; the events include a wide range of in-person and online activities.

Aside from her role as this year’s Artistic Director/Producer of UBC’s 4th annual UBC ARTIVISM festival, Bianca is the Director of the arts and culture club Exposure UBC. She is a Dominican photographer, digital designer, producer and activist born in the Dominican Republic and currently is a 4th-year student at UBC, majoring in Media Studies.

In her work, Bianca explores themes of race, gender, sexuality and the media, focusing on the way media shapes our society. To find out more about the UBC ARTIVISM - Queering the Self Festival, check out arts.ubc.ca/artivism.


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Hailing from Phoenix, AZ, David Hernandez gained national attention with his powerful voice and affable personality as a popular American Idol Finalist in Season Seven. In addition to American Idol, David has showcased his talents on The Ellen Show, The Today Show, MTV’s TRL, EXTRA, Entertainment Tonight, Access Hollywood, Teen Choice Awards, the list goes on and on... He was invited to sing at the Inaugural Kick-Off Celebration Ball for Barak Obama, performing alongside Jamie Foxx, John Legend, Maroon 5.

Since then, David has shared the stage with the likes of Bryan Adams, Donna Summer, Taylor Dayne, Thea Austin, and Cece Peniston to name a few. David’s hit single, “Beautiful” reached the Top 100 of the Billboard Dance charts while the music video was a viral sensation. Soon after, he released his 2nd album, “Kingdom: The Mixtape”. When the pandemic hit, he released a social distanced music video “Sorry” and hosted a live stream (stay tuned for its return on his Insta and FB).


In addition, David teamed up with fellow American Idol Finalist, Effie Passero, to create a dynamic power duo named 2nd Hour. Their single and music video, “What I See” is available now and David’s latest single & music video, “ILY” (I Love You) is available on streaming platforms everywhere.

David is currently performing in Vegas as part of the only fully nude musical review in Vegas, Naked Boys Singing! featuring a cast of five handsome “boys” with gorgeous voices, hilarious comedic timing, and no clothing! You can find out more about David and what he’s up to at www.officialdavidhernandez.com