Reza, Diana

At the 2017 ¡Mirame! Exhibition

Hello, my fellow Chicana Art and Artists peers! My name is Diana Reza and I am a fourth-year undergrad here and am majoring in Psychobiology, with a minor in Chicana/o studies. I am excited to be on that last stretch before graduation and feel excited to enjoy this class as one of my last ones. I am looking forward to hopefully being able to expand my knowledge of Chicana artists and what their influences mean to me as a Chicana. I was also unaware of the art component for this class and am really excited that I'll be able to work creatively again and be able to increase somewhat my artistic knowledge and skills.

For the reading this week, I wanted to discuss the essay by our professor, Alma Lopez "It's not about the Santa in My Fe, but the Santa Fe in My Santa." I have read Professor Lopez's book before for a previous class with her, but this time I analyzed it from a different perspective based on the subject of this class. The previous course was dealing with Censored Art and with this class focusing on Chicana artists, I was able to pay attention to the Chicana in the reading versus the work of art. I felt a stronger sense of how the Chicana artists mentioned in the excerpts were not only making "controversial" art but making as Chicana women as well.

It was also interesting to then understand more how the Virgen of Guadalupe can be this amazing icon for the revolutionary Chicana, as well as an artistic symbol of Chicana strength. This is even more thought-provoking when you consider that much of her creation and spread throughout our culture is colonized. These ambiguities of this sacred santa were thoughts I didn't initially consider when I first read this passage and it is exciting to see how I can understand future material through the continued use of multiple frameworks.