Carmen Lomas Garza

Carmen Lomas Garza reimagines the type of imagery used in painting that one is constantly bombarded with by purposefully placing her own self and culture within her artworks. Beautifully illustrated scenes of her childhood are depicted with vibrant colors and the most minute details are shown attention. For me, Lomas Garza's attention to detail translates as attention to symbolism and what meaning these small details, such as home decor/landscape/etc., might carry. Carmen Lomas Garza’s work is such an important step in the trajectory of “art history”. Being an aspiring Chicanx artist myself, having the ability to relate to an artist such as Lomas Garza and witnessing her success reinforces the possibilities and opens up more space for people of color to express their own experiences and culture. Burning of the Codices (2002) is a work by Lomas Garza that really struck me. Very different from her colorful work prior, Lomas Garza simplifies the work with the use of only the color blue without losing her attention to detail and illustrates indigenous knowledge/wisdom that was burned and destroyed by the Spanish and Catholic clergy. This artwork is an extremely important piece, not just to the Mexican American community or even Latin America, but to the entire world because it very simply illustrates the atrocities/cultural genocide at the hands of colonization.