Gavazza, Emmalee (Extra Credit)

I enjoyed learning about Dr. Judy Baca and her work in the world of art. My artist for my Wikipedia project was Pilar Agüero-Esparza, another Chicana artists who uses her education and experience as a professional artist to help young artists find their voice and take pride in their identities. The work Dr. Baca is doing in schools strikes me as absolutely vital. There is a lot of negative messaging and representation of all people of color right now in America, but as usual, Chicanx kids are particularly exposed to negative stereotypes and portrayals of “people who look like me” as unwanted or underappreciated members of society. When Dr. Baca said that she always starts her primary school art lessons by helping students “find a color that reminds them of them, and then… tell them over and over that it’s beautiful, that it’s beauty,” I found that to be a profound statement. Her activist art education will undeniably play a role in helping the young people she teaches reimagine their skin color, their features, their cultural backgrounds, and their ethnic identities as something to be celebrated rather than as a source of shame or exclusion. I also appreciated Dr. Baca’s comments on the nature of different art media, for instance, her thoughts on the nature of murals. When she said that a mural was “not simply decorative art,” but a piece that was “integrated into the architecture, not an easel painting made large but a work integrated into the place, into the moment in time that it’s painted,” I was reminded of some of the critical scholarship provided by Claudia Zapata and others we’ve studied in this class. The emphasis on place, moment, and representing “the people” as they exist in a specific point in time seems to be an important theme for many contemporary Chicana artists. Learning about Dr. Baca provided me with another important point of reference for how that tradition is being played out, both in schools and throughout U.S. cities, today.

Gavazza, Emmalee (Reflections)

When I reflect on this course, I feel really grateful. I genuinely enjoyed taking this class, and feel like I gained a lot of knowledge that will be valuable and useful to me for a long time. I have taken Chicana-centered classes before, but have never taken one that was specifically dedicated to discussing Chicana artists, which was especially cool since I’m an Art History major. The constant thread of activism that runs through so much of the art and artists we viewed was really important to me. As I’m sure everyone in this class recognizes, although there have been some gains in female visibility, women artists are still often mentioned after men. I thought this class was a wonderful chance to focus on what Chicanas are doing in the art world and how they continue to influence its shape (as they have always done, but have not always been recognized for). Another topic that I found fascinating was the intersection of Chicana art and artists with issues of technology, modernism, and digital media & materials. Claudia Zapata’s (and co-editors’) discussion in the compilation, “Impact of Chicano Graphics, 1965 to Now” exposed me to a lot of important information that changed the way I think about the relationship of technology to art production in general, and the specific role Chicanx artists have played in advancing & exploring new ways to take advantage of that relationship. I enjoyed learning about how issues of activism, feminism, labor advocacy and Chicanx identity translated so seamlessly from handmade artworks to digitally mediated forms. It’s not necessarily what you always think of when you hear “Chicana art,” but it’s definitely a part of the story that deserves more attention. Within this realm, I was particularly struck by the art of Marion C. Martinez. The way she salvages pieces of digital hardware that society would otherwise discard as mere trash, and turns them into these transformative works that invoke themes of divinity, protection, and the natural world is just amazing to me. It’s a process of reclamation that imagines a different perspective on technology, when so many critics and artists have traditionally used things like circuit boards or computer chips as symbols of anxiety and societal dread. To me Martinez’ work challenges our ideas about what technology can mean in our lives in a way that is both refreshing and eye-catching. Learning about artists like her is one of the things I’m most appreciative for as this course comes to an end.

Gavazza, Emmalee (Week 10: Presentations)

I really enjoyed Hector’s presentation on Martha Ramirez Oropeza. The fact that Ramirez Oropeza teaches at UCLA makes this an even more intriguing connection, knowing that we could have access to this artist and engage with her personally a lot more easily than we could for many of the other artists we’ve learned about so far. I love what she has done with the medium of murals. For me, murals are an especially important form of art because they change a public space into something that draws the viewer in and asks them to reconsider certain subjects or symbols. So to have an artist like Ramirez Oropeza using indigenous Nahuatl philosophy and theology in her murals, it creates a kind of visibility that these topics don’t always receive in the mainstream art world, which I think is really significant. I loved the image of Mother Earth regenerating everything and everyone at once, blowing life into the plants and the whole world. It feels very energetic and at the same time, extremely calming and peaceful, like the concept of Mother Earth herself. Learning that Ramirez Oropeza got her first exposure to murals during the Chicanx civil rights movement, I definitely feel like I can see the connection with some of her work today. There’s a sense of vibrancy and reverence for Nahuatl practices and beliefs that seem to align with the recognition that colonialism and post-colonial legacies has tried to diminish the importance of those traditions, but they come alive in Ramirez Oropeza’s artwork, like her 1989 mural preserving the history of the Chicana movement, and generally reifies the Chicanx diaspora. Hector did a great job introducing us to some of these themes in Ramirez Oropeza’s art, and I really appreciated learning more about her background & her philosophy as an artist.

Gavazza, Emmalee (Week 9: Sand One)

During the presentations for week 9, I was really fascinated by the art of Sand One, as presented by Mara Higuera. Her “dolls” really stood out to me, because they seem like a take on modern feminism. They’re hyperfeminine figures that represent the underdogs of the Chicana community--single mothers, strippers, and women who experience struggle. Her dolls each have their own intricate backstory and accompanying zodiac sign; everything from 29 year old Pisces “Pride”, a single lesbian who knows the hustle, to 22 year old “Cakes”, a Haitian Capricorn who makes a living selling penthouses & thrives on her own independence. All her dolls have long luscious lashes, which take inspiration from her mother’s love for makeup & mascara. On the surface, the dolls might just seem like representations of women who fit into traditional beauty norms, but they’re more complicated than that. They’re women who endure hardships and never give up, women with passions who work towards a better life, women who take time to enjoy the finer things. They’re strong women who stay true to themselves, and who defy society’s expectations of what a feminine woman should be. Something that interests me about Sand One is how she works across various scales, creating digital art prints, and even large-scale graffiti murals. It helps to make her work accessible to different kinds of art consumers. She has also discussed facing backlash for her art style, and how some people don’t take her seriously as an artist because of racist, classist, and sexist expectations of Latina artists. It’s really great to see how she’s working to create a presence for women who don’t fit into traditional roles. Overall, I was impressed by her work & the associated concepts she comes up with. Thank you for your presentation, Mara!

Gavazza, Emmalee (Week 8: Ruby Chacon)

I really enjoyed everyone’s presentations for week 8! It was hard to pick only one artist when all of them were so talented & unique. One artist that really stood out to me was Ruby Chacon, as presented by Lilibeth Chavez. Ruby Chacon’s murals are incredibly detailed and full of symbolism celebrating the Chicanx experience & life in Utah. It was interesting to learn about how Ruby wanted to divert from traditional depictions of Utah & humanize people in her work. So much art that I’ve seen centered around Utah depicts it as a sort of barren landscape (beautiful, nonetheless) but doesn’t typically include actual people, when in reality, Utah has a vibrant culture like the rest of the southwest. I loved the mural “Cihuacoatl and Golden Rule”. It’s a 15’x30’ mural depicting Cihuacoatl, a Mexica goddess of fertility and childbirth, surrounded by modern people each engaging in different activities. We see some folks working the land, some musicians, families, etc. The land is bountiful, and everyone is engaging in the “golden rule”; treating others as you yourself would want to be treated. It’s a beautiful, colorful painting. One of my favorite things that Lilibeth told us was about how Ruby Chacon discussed growing up with limited resources and how she wanted to make her work accessible to everyone, which is why she enjoys displaying her art in public spaces where everyone can see. I really appreciate that as someone who is passionate about accessibility. I also grew up working class and I remember being awe-stricken by murals I’d see as a child--public art matters. Thanks for your presentation, Lilibeth!

Gavazza, Emmalee (Week 7: Claudia E. Zapata)

This week’s reading on “The Rise and Impact of Chicano Graphics” was really illuminating to me as it brought up issues that I have not considered before, much less investigated in the depth and detail that Claudia Zapata brings to the subject. When Zapata quoted Terezita Romo as saying that Chicano artists’ work in the poster medium represented “the unofficial conscience of the country” in the 60s and 70s, I felt an immediate connection to that statement. I remember seeing this kind of art throughout my childhood, adolescence, and adult life growing up in Southern California, which is the actual location for many of the cultural phenomena that is explored in the work of these artists and activists. However, the transition from handmade physical prints to digitally mediated art is one that I’ve rarely considered, although I’ve definitely been impacted by some of its products. I was especially struck by Zapata’s continued emphasis on not only the technical and procedural changes that marked this time of innovation among Chicano artists, but also the consistency of purpose that serves as a connecting thread between the past and present: even as they benefit from, participate in, and drive the “technological exchange” that Zapata’s essay documents, Chicano artists have remained largely dedicated to using these various art media as a means of engaging the public in meaningful discourse about their culture, and particularly, its intersection with capitalist exploitation and social marginalization by the predominantly white mainstream. Seeing César Chávez standing next to artist Barbara Carrasco below her billboard-presented digital art, whose subject was a commentary on the ongoing exploitation of farmworker labor and the harmful effects of their exposure to toxic chemicals used by the grape-growers, really drove the point home for me that these artists aren’t just experimenting with new forms of expression, but actively seeking to leverage them to disseminate the activist content in their work to wider audiences as the country moves into the digital age.

Xandra Ibarra (Week 6)

Viewing Xandra Ibarra’s art was truly an experience. Scrolling through her website, you saw work that was bold, unexpected, and unapologetic. But it was clear that her work was more than content made for shock value--it was authentic, with a high degree of vulnerability woven throughout. Everything from intersectional feminism, to the experience of being a Brown womxn in the US (and specifically someone with a Chicana identity), sexual liberation, queer politics, abuse, and self-metamorphosis are found in her art.

One piece that really stood out to me was “Free To Those Who Deserve It (2020)”. It is part of the Sheree Rose and Bob Flanagan collection at ONE Archives inside the USC Libraries. “Free To Those Who Deserve it (2020)” is a series of images depicting sculptural penises held in colorful vices, with piercings and nails embedded throughout the flesh. At first glance, it was shocking. Powerful and violent. Photographs that would probably make most people shudder. But the more I looked, the more fine details I noticed. The sculptural genitals look incredibly tactile, with little bumps and ridges, veins and wrinkles carefully placed. They appear pliable and lifelike. Because of this softness, they look to be almost gently cradled by the vices. However, the cold metal piercings & needles offer a stark contrast to the warmth, and remind you--very explicitly--this is no vanilla act of sexual or bodily expression. My immediate impression was that this was not only an act of sexual rebelion, but also a criticism of the patriarchy. There seems to be a balance between femininity and masculinity at play, with violence used as liberation.

I am writing this past our meeting with Xandra Ibarra, but I found it incredibly enlightening getting to know her as an artist. I wanted to know about her inspiration behind this artwork. I enjoyed learning about Sheree Rose and Bob Flanagan, the performance artist couple that inspired the artwork, and more about her feminism. Overall, I’m a huge fan of her art and can’t wait to see what she creates in the future.

Gavazza, Emmalee (Wiki Draft: Pilar Aguero-Esparza)

Pilar Agüero-Esparza

Pilar Agüero-Esparza (b. 1966) is an American visual artist known especially for her paintings, sculptures, and mixed media installations that deal with issues of race, skin color, and the Chicanx experience.

Pilar Agüero-Esparza was born in Los Angeles and grew up in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of East LA (1). She credits her parents’ shoe shop for exposing her to the “potential and richness of materials” that informs much of her work. After receiving a BA in Art from the University of California Santa Cruz, Agüero-Esparza went on to earn her MFA in Spatial Art from San Jose State University. Since the 1990s, she has been an active artist in and around the San Francisco Bay Area in particular, but has also contributed works to exhibitions in Southern California and France, in addition to having works commissioned for special events and buildings (2). An educator and arts administrator as well, Agüero-Esparza continues to use her education and experience to help developing artists find their voices and navigate the artistic world (3).

Selected Works
· Stratum / Merging (2019): https://richmondartcenter.org/exhibitions/over-and-under/
· Spectrum (2018): https://pilaraguero.com/skin-tone-drawings
· Skin Tone Parquet (2018): https://pilaraguero.com/xicanx-biennial

References
1. ^ https://pilaraguero.com/bio
2. ^ https://www.svlaureates.org/artist/pilar-aguero-esparza/
3. ^ https://maclaarte.org/pilar-aguero-esparza/

Further reading
· Artist’s personal website: https://pilaraguero.com/

External links
· Interview: https://vimeo.com/417316683
· Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1ww8BSXuNc

Gavazza, Emmalee (Week 4: Rasquachismo)

Rasquachismo can be hard to define because the lack of strict, formal, institutional definition is such a significant part of what it means to be rasquache. As Tomás Ybarra-Frausto writes in “Rasquachismo: A Chicano Sensibility,” there is a sense that “to name this sensibility, to draw its contours… is risking its betrayal.” Ybarra-Frausto also points out that rasquachismo is “nonlinear, exploratory, and unsolemn.” None of these features make it easy to put a dictionary definition onto the word or the ideas it communicates.

But from what I understand, rasquachismo is an underdog mentality and an attitude of improvisation and “making do” or “making it work.” This stance is both aesthetic and cultural. It rejects the strict borders of belonging and unbelonging that the “middle” and “upper” classes often spend so much time defining and enforcing. Instead, rasquachismo embraces the vibrant creative energy that “moves outside established boundaries” (Ybarra-Frausto) when working-class people use whatever resources are available to make their lives more functional or beautiful, or both at the same time. It’s about collage and improvisation, taking the materials at hand and using them in novel ways to add vitality to the rasquache’s lived experience.

When I first heard this word, it made me think of my dad. He’s a very thoughtful and creative person who enjoys finding ways to add personal touches to the assorted domestic projects that come up in his day to day life, especially if it involves working around the established way of doing things. A retired school custodian and union representative, he takes pride in never going to the store to buy something that he could make himself; last year he showed me how to change the rotors on my car. In other words, he loves to hacer rendir las cosas. Some of my dad’s projects have included collecting antique salt-and-pepper shakers shaped like various objects (ironing board, kitchen mixer, cars, etc), building his own plant aquarium, sealing small personal artifacts (creosote flowers from his yard, an old pocket watch) in molded resin to make ornamental cubes, and using PVC pipe and chicken wire to build an enclosure for his car so that the pesky desert kangaroo rats (he lives near Joshua Tree) won’t find their way under the hood overnight and chew on the wiring. My dad loves playing host to the various desert animals that share his environment; as the sun goes down every evening he likes to watch birds, rabbits, and squirrels gather to drink from the makeshift fountain he’s made out of an old plastic tub and an electric pond pump. He doesn’t view these tasks as a bother and seems to take a kind of roguish delight in adding his own flair to each one. To me, his approach is very rasquache.

Gavazza, Emmalee (Week 5 - Carmen Lomas Garza)

I was really struck by Garza's painting "Sandia / Watermelon" (1986). The watermelon seems to act as a kind of unifying symbol; there are multiple generations, both men and women, and even suggestions of different societal/career roles in the image (with the man sitting down wearing overalls and a field hat while the standing man cutting the watermelon is wearing kakhis and a white button-down)—but everyone has a slice of watermelon. The enjoyment of this fruit is one thing they all have in common, at least in this moment. This may also suggest the strong communal undercurrents in Chicanx culture that Garza was seeking to illuminate.

At the same time, there is a kind of emphasis on the act of eating watermelon itself as a simple and pure source of enjoyment that everyone is really involved in, as if they're for the time being not really thinking about anything else. The little boy is hunched over his slice of watermelon, with another ready and waiting in his left hand. The girl at the table seems to have just gone back for another slice, and now she's looking at the watermelon as she eats it, like nothing else around her is of much consequence. The only real break from the pattern of people being consumed with consuming their watermelon is the young girl bringing a slice of watermelon to the abuela figure. The elderly woman fully extends her arm to accept it, as the young girl offers her a piece of the delicious fruit. To me this suggests reverence for elders and the idea that respecting older generations is one tradition powerful enough to break the spell of the watermelon.

I also enjoyed the way this painting literally shines a light on the home/porch as a site of security, togetherness and reassurance. It is dark all around, with a crescent moon shining somewhat dimly in the upper right corner of the image. Yet the porch light, just a little ways removed from that moon, is blazing out almost like a small sun. I like the sense of warmth this image has, and how it emphasizes to our eyes that this family is full of light and life when they're with each other.

Gavazza, Emmalee (Abstract for Pilar Agüero-Esparza)

Agüero-Esparza, Pilar. “Statement.” (N.D.), http://pilaraguero.com/statement

This is the artist’s statement from Agüero-Esparza’s personal website. Here, Agüero-Esparza describes in general terms her approach to creating visual art. She also gives some specific insights into the media used in the portfolio found on her website. According to Agüero-Esparza, her work centers on using materials that she has a personal connection to and letting that relationship dictate how each piece is created. The statement briefly mentions the artist’s ideas about topics like race, class, and gender, then discusses in greater detail how she uses Color Theory to explore ideas about race in her work.

Rupersburg, Nicole. “Pilar Agüero-Esparza is an artist, teacher, and mother who explores themes of labor and domesticity.” Creative Exchange, springboardexchange.com, December 16, 2014, https://springboardexchange.org/pilaragueroesparza/

In this zine article, Rupersburg summarizes parts of her interview with Agüero-Esparza and puts those quotations into context. Biographical information about the artist’s upbringing and background is mixed with commentary on specific works of art that she has created. She talks about being a teacher and how this informs her art. Specific commentary on the philosophy behind works like “Homework House,” “No Children Left,” and “Multicultural Crayons,” among others, is provided. This source provides useful details on how the artist views her own work and the themes or artistic ideas that informed the creation of these particular pieces.

MACLA. “Pilar Agüero-Esparza, Artist Live Takeover.” MACLA Presents: Stories from La Sala, May 12, 2020, https://maclaarte.org/pilar-aguero-esparza/

In this “live takeover,” Agüero-Esparza hosts a roughly half-hour informal virtual chat/hangout for the Movimiento de Arte y Cultura Latino Americana. The session takes place in the artist’s home. She talks about some of the artists whose work is visible in her home before moving on to more in-depth conversation with some of her own pieces. Some are finished pieces and others are works-in-progress. Two-dimensional pieces as well as sculptures are included. Agüero-Esparza explains her thought process while creating these pieces and gives detailed notes about not only what each one represents, but also how she works while making them. Notes about who commissioned the pieces and what their purpose was are also included. A useful primary source for more comprehensive insights into how Agüero-Esparza views her work and what her creative process looks like.

Gavazza, Emmalee (Week 3)

Growing up around Catholic family & loved ones, I'm familiar with the imagery of Virgen de Guadalupe. I recognize her image from murals, votive candles, necklaces, and even clothing. I personally do not have a relationship with her though, as I grew up in a Presbyterian Christian household. We were taught that working with saints was "idolatry" and to avoid it, though I was always fascinated by beautiful & intricate Catholic symbolism. I remember as a child I was swimming in one of the local lakes near my house, and I saw something shimmering among the shells I was collecting. When I went to inspect it, I saw that it was a silver pendant with her image on it. I brought it home, and at the time, it felt powerful and symbolic to me. I was very drawn to the pendant, which I kept on my nightstand for years. In hindsight, it's funny to think about the sort of abstract relationship I formed with her, without having any background knowledge of her religious implications. It was by no means a traditional relationship and was without standard cultural connection, but she served as a token to remember my spirituality. My father, who grew up Catholic but no longer practices, has an old Virgen de Guadalupe statue that he inherited from his mother, but she was more of a remembrance of my grandmother than anything. Reading everyone's blog posts, it's so interesting to see how much she has been an influence in other people's lives. She's such an iconic figure that even those of us who thought we didn't really have any connection to her have memories of her.

Agüero-Esparza, Pilar

2. Veronica Rojas
3. Karen Miranda Rivadeneira