Carmen Lomas Garza

The image that I chose is titled Tamalada. All of the works of Carmen depict the everyday life of Latinos in Texas. But this image in particular resonated with me to a more than personal level. This is a tradition that I have found across my family. From my grandmother, to my mother and my aunt and uncles we all have participated in this one way or the other.
This takes places several times a year and very year we all participate, during thanksgiving, Christmas, birthdays and many other special occasions. This image depict the labor intensive task that making tamales is. As a child I would watch my mother make these every day for long periods of time and the next day we would take off to selling them in El Mercado. Making tamales then does not only signify family it also signifies survival and self sustainability. My mother and aunt would make these from scratch everyday and everyday we would assist in this.
The work of Carmen is amazing because is depict these heart warming experiences in a way that most of us can connect to them. Reading a book about her really gave the context to understand how she developed her self as an artist and how these beautiful images came to be. 
Her earliest works although not the same as these are also amazing as they helped her follow the path that led her to establish this beautiful style of hers. I am sure that many others can find a deep connection with her work as I have done.