Xandra Ibarra is a many-sided artist who works with video, performance, and sculpture. Ibarra does activist work to bring to light how borders can be gendered, improper racialized, and queer. An art piece that gravitated to me was the Photographies of Lo Norteño (2008). With the first image depicting an older man cleaning the inside of a pool, the second image showing a street known as Ascarate Drive, and the third image showing an older lady behind the bars of her fence in what seems to be her home.
One thing that really caught my attention was the filters used in the images. The filter focusing on colors such as bright orange and turquoise really reminded me of the type of colors one uses in the Day of the Dead celebrations. I brightened images really show the heat of the sun in the sun and emphasize the vividness of life in El Norte. With Ibarra’s focus being around the El Paso/Juarez border, these images may be indicating the work ethic of Northern Mexico and the situation of women in Northern Mexico as well as other parts of Mexico.
When emphasizing on the third picture, behind the women are white statues of angels which may indicate that the personal relationships of women being homemakers and devoting their life to religion. When thinking of it in general terms, it can indicate the way that colonizers justified their moving of the border up North by using religion. While the other images are more simplistic and harder to interpret the image with the women resonated with me the most, as a woman who's growing up in the Latine community.
Xandra Ibarra as an artist brings to light the experiences of latine through her use of photography, video, and performance. Her photographs tend to tell stories through one snapshot.
Questions:
What inspiration was used for this photography collection?
Who were used for the images depicted and why?
What connection do you have with Ascarate drive?
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