A point of discussion that really stuck out to me was the idea of art produced in an era of post-machismo. I believe this term does have validity because when I hear the term Chicano art, it evokes very specific images and motifs and themes that it would be necessary to classify the contemporary era of production as post that.
When I hear Chicano I think works, usually paintings, that speak in a similar visual language. Murals that follow a similar template to that of Diego Rivera, and feminist pieces usually centered around Frida Kahlo, La Virgen de Guadalupe, and female reproductive organs. Additionally it needs to be activist inherently. As a Latino in an art department I feel that all the work I have to do has to revolve around this aesthetic, in addition to being revolutionary in some sense. Although not explicitly stated, I do feel that it is heavily implied that I do work that follows that artistic logic.
In the way I have defined Chicanismo and post Chicanismo I feel that Laura Aguilar's work would fall under this definition. To me it seems completely novel and I love the theoretical baking behind her to work. To create images of herself that she finds beautiful, to find beauty in herself in a world hat tells her not to is completely revolutionary without completely following the Chicano aesthetic.
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