Laura Aguilar

I have previously seen Laura Aguilar's work on the internet. However most of the commentary on her work only expressed sizeism and her incorporation of other body sizes as beautiful. However, when she was spoken about in class, that is what her art became so much more significant to me. The way she views herself through her is absolutely beautiful and powerful. By also keeping in mind that as an artist and a queer person of color her identity is constantly negated due to her size and abilities. When Professor Alma Lopez discussed why she allowed her the Chicano Studies Research Center to archive her work, was another raw image that Laura portrayed. She already had plans to commit suicide, and she was still making sure her work could be appreciated. I think as a person who has experienced similar negating of identities with both mental health, sexuality, my body image and how I am perceived, her suicidal thoughts deeply resonated and I suddenly felt very emotional. How she uses her art to feel better about who she is, inspires me like no other artist or person has.