Judy Baca

Judy Baca's painting Tres Generaciones was done in 1973 and is oil on canvas. It was presented in class this week and our classmate who presented did a great job going into detail about it. This painting made a big impression on me because of the thought and careful detail that went into it. The characters, the placement of them, and colors that connected all three characters made a great mental and visual image. I also enjoyed it because I could see myself and my family in the image. I am very close with my mother and grandmother and many people say that my actions reflect their actions when they were my age. It is common to hear that people inherit their ancestor’s physical characteristics and personalities and we see this in Tres Generaciones.  In the painting we see Baca in her grandmother and mother both in physical stance and I also see a resemblance in how they look.

The painting itself uses colors beautifully while still having a sense of seriousness. As the presenter said in class we see a young Baca, her mother and grandmother in different colors and Baca in the present is a mix of all three colors. This shows that she is a combination of them all. Also on the bottom of each figure the colors fade into the other characters. Overall I love this painting, and think it was done beautifully.