Perez, Armando "Papel Picado"

 

Carmen Lomas Garza “Haciendo Papel Picado/Making Paper Cutouts”, 1999, Black Paper Cutout, 22” x 30” (Pg. 84). In this image of the Papel Picado by Garza I have chosen to write about, shows a black and white image done in the aesthetic of the paper cutout style to tell the story of how “Papel Picado” is made and constructed. The scene shows what looks to be a family gathered around a dining room table making the paper cutouts together and the image of the oldest female located on the top side of the image appears to represent a mother figure teaching her children how to make the Papel Picado’s. The mother appears to be explaining to the children how the images within the cutouts each represent aspects of their Mexican heritage and traditional methods of visually making art to aide in storytelling and hopefully they will inspire others to keep the tradition alive for the future.  

Papel Picado is something that is very much one of Carmen Lomas Garza’s visual story-telling techniques and one she is extremely well known for. There is no wonder when one come across one of Garza’s Papel Picado public art panels or the numerous images of Papel Picado found in her paintings that one can recognize how she values the aesthetic imagery of the traditional art within her work. These papel picado works convey a sense of pride for Garza and her family’s heritage, there Mexican traditions, culture, and for her community, Carmen Lomas Garza’s ongoing contributions as a Chicana artists and activist represents a lifetime of love and dedication trying to bring awareness and positive change for the Mexican people and specifically the countless that have seen and experienced the same struggles she witnessed growing up with.

Most Papel Picado/Making Paper Cutouts are usually done in vibrant colors which are in line with the colorful Mexican traditions of painting and in many of the visual arts one may have seen but Garza has taken this art form to different levels and has incorporated them in her works through various mediums like, traditional paper cutouts, metal transformations in the same style of the Papel Picado used for public art and has written several books related to the art form and an easy guide with instructions for anyone wanting to learn and make there own Papel Picado. In my own Family my mother and law and sister in law’s this practice is kept alive. My hope is that everyone who is Mexican or of Mexican heritage will be inspired to make their own and experience the joy the colors bring to home environment and particularly now that we all have more knowledge of their significance. Thank you to Carmen Lomas Garza for sharing her stories and the history of Papel Picado.