Art Is Medicine: Roger Montoya on Creating a Place to Become

At Moving Arts Española, creativity helps young people discover their gifts, carry their culture forward, and guide the next generation.

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Roger Montoya’s life changed during the HIV/AIDS crisis. Returning to northern New Mexico after dancing in Los Angeles and New York, he expected his future to be short. Instead, loss clarified his purpose. He walked into Velarde Elementary School, asked how he could help, and began by painting a mural.

That offering grew into an arts-in-the-schools program and ultimately Moving Arts Española, the organization Montoya co-founded with Salvador Ruiz-Esquivel. For two decades, Moving Arts has given young people a place to dance, paint, cook, make films, play music, explore technology, and discover abilities they hadn’t imagined.

Its belief is simple: art is medicine. Montoya inherited the phrase from his mother and grandmother, who understood creativity, community, and love as forms of healing. He sees it in children moving from uncertainty to confidence, teenagers discovering their voice onstage, and students returning as teachers and mentors for those following behind them.

The organization’s impact reaches beyond expression. In a region shaped by economic hardship, addiction, and generational loss, Moving Arts reconnects young people with language, land, and tradition. Its recent production, El Agua es Vida, used theater, music, and dance to explore northern New Mexico’s acequia culture 

Moving Arts also gives young people responsibility. Alumni return to work as staff, while teenagers earn wages as interns and assist younger students. Teaching becomes another form of self-discovery.

Montoya’s advice for anyone hoping to help is modest: begin by asking what you can offer. A mural can become a district-wide program. An abandoned building can become a vessel of love. One creative opportunity can ripple through a community—and into the next generation.

To learn more about Moving Arts Espanola, visit them at https://movingartsespanola.org