Carmen Lomas Garza

In the times of the Chicano movement,  this artist was inspired to create images that would resonate with her Mexican-American audiences, and her name is Carmen Lomas Garza. She depicted her childhood in South Texas and the daily activities and traditions that it entails. She worked with all types of materials, gouache and alkyd paintings, prints, cutouts, and books for children, so her art was reaching many audiences. Apart from the inspiration from her interpersonal relationships, she also tried to reveal the hope and tenacity that anchored the Chicano community in that era.

A piece of Garza ’s that really resonated with me is Lotería-Primera Tabla,1972. In this artwork, she depicts elements/characters of her life that she grew up with, in the style of the Mexican bingo game, Lotería. I grew up playing this game at the end of most parties and hangouts with my family.  We bonded so much over this game and sometimes took it too seriously, we played with money too. It was an honor to lay the cards face up because as a little boy with broken Spanish, it felt good to be able to correctly, and loudly, pronounce the words that read on the card. Seeing Loteria-Primera Table in the book brought back so much nostalgia because of how much being able to hang out with my family means to me, and especially my grandma. Loteria is one of those things that I greatly correlate with her,  which is why this piece especially resonated with me. My grandma is my greatest influence in terms of exposure to my Mexican culture, and she also played a pivotal role in shaping who I am today.