Laura Aguilar

While several artists have been talked about these past couple of weeks the one that struck me the most was Laura Aguilar. More specifically, her photograph titled Three Eagles Flying. It really speaks to me the most because it is politically driven. Regardless of Aguilar being naked in the middle of the photograph, the U.S. and Mexico flags both on her body and on the sides, speaks a lot about identity. As a Mexican American, this image impacted the way I looked at myself growing up because I’ve been forced to have to question my own identity among my peers. The need of having to identify as either/or has made it difficult for me to be able to develop an identity that others would approve. That being said, to me the ropes that have Aguilar tied up in the image reflect the inescapable bond that one has towards their nationality and ethnicity. One is not simply free to be whom they want; one’s identity is confined to the norms and expectations of society.

Being that the photograph is political it reminded me a lot of Yolanda Lopez’ art. Some of the art that Lopez created was political especially considering the time in which she grew up. Her image titled Who’s the Illegal Alien, Pilgrim? can be compared to Aguilar’s photograph because it also speaks to the issue of identity. In this case the issue of who is considered “illegal” is socially constructed and is also inescapable from the thoughts of people. Lastly, in my opinion, both Chicana artists question identity because while it may seem that we have full agency over who we are, other forces are at work that we can’t control.