Gonzalez, Elizabeth

Taken this summer in my parents hometown of Jocotepec, Jalisco

Hi everyone, my name is Elizabeth Gonzalez but I go by "Eli". I am a Senior majoring in World Arts & Cultures, and I am also a transfer student from Santa Barbara City College. I was born and raised in Santa Barbara, but both of my parents are from Jalisco, Mexico. I am taking this course because as a Chicana myself, I enjoy taking courses that are about my own culture and I want to learn more about Chicana art and artists. In addition, I love being able to creatively express myself through art, and I believe that art is a critical instrument for social change and empowerment. I grew up in a Catholic household, attending mass in Spanish every Sunday and seeing a portrait of La Virgen de Guadalupe hanging in our living room every day. As I grew older my parents stopped taking us to church, but I have always felt like I could look to La Virgen more than Jesus or any other religious figure. This summer I also went to Mexico to visit family and we took a trip to Mexico City where we went to the Basilica of La Virgen and attended mass at 6am. Seeing the "original" tilma on which the Virgen appeared was a highlight of our trip and even though I am also skeptical, because of the reasons discussed in lecture, I still think it is an amazing image to see because of the power it holds and what it means to her millions of followers. Although the only public image I saw of her as a child was outside Our Lady of Guadalupe church on the East side of Santa Barbara, my visits to Mexico and the various representations of La Virgen that I saw in my own home taught me the importance of La Virgen within our culture and community.