Week 9 Post: Chicana Printmaking

The article "Where Are The Chicana Printmakers?: Presence and Absence in the Work of Chicana Artists of the Movimiento," by Holly Barnet-Sanchez, brought some intriguing comments to light about Chicana printmaking from the 1960s to the 1990s. I found the analysis of Patssi Valdez' print, Scattered, to be particularly interesting within the article's discussion of images focusing on the female body. The article describes the image as a self-portrait, yet one that is fragmented and shows a blank expression from Valdez. I agree with this read by Barnet-Sanchez, yet I think despite the blank expression, the image conveys emotion through the fragmented pattern. The fragmentation can read as a response from Valdez to her body being the focus of many performance works within ASCO. The image of a cracked mirror also brings with it the connotation of self-destruction or self-loathing, especially when women present themselves this way. Female value often revolves around how beautiful women are. When growing up, little girls are more likely to be congratulated on being "pretty" or "nice", then being "strong" or "intelligent." I see Valdez' work as a commentary on this societal obsession with beauty, perhaps in response to her direct experience as a physical object in other artworks, or as a more personal reflection. Either way, the work draws the viewer in, but also serves within the article as a print that reflects on female experience, but does not limit itself to a Chicana reading.