Plascencia, Raul Week 10

At the beginning of this quarter, I was very unfamiliar with Chicana art and artists, especially as Chicana women are under represented within the art world. As time progressed, I was introduced to various art styles and wonderful Chicana artists who redefined both what it means to be a Chicana and what it takes to be an artist. Though all the artist that were introduced within this class are excellent and talented in their own rights, the artist that stood out to me most was Yolanda M. Lopez. Lopez, herself stood out to me the most due to her artistic reinvention and recreation of the religious icon, known as La Virgin de Guadalupe. Her art was beautiful and resonated with me due to the image's familiarity. The Virgin of Guadalupe is a very popular and sacred image within Hispanic/Catholic homes, so although familiar it was amazing and nostalgic to see the Virgin reimagined through the Chicana perspective.  

Plascencia, Raul (Week 9)

 Once again, this past week's presentation on Chicana artists were absolutely amazing and great to hear about.  The artist who had stood out the most to me would have to Johana Toruño, who primarily adheres her photography and artwork publicly alongside walls through the use of a special wheat paste. Though her works range from portraits of political figures to fictional cartoon characters, Johana's work is very special and eye-grabbing to me. I especially love the fact that she creates works of art that represent positive views of queer love. Her point of view allows for the LGBTQ+ community to have representation in avenues never seen before. One final point that astounds me about the artist, is her thought for her artworks' accessibility to the open public. The main reason behind pasting her artworks around New York City's walls is to give public access to lower income minority groups, who do not have much resources to access fine art. 

Plascencia, Raul (Week 8)

 To start off, this past Tuesday's presentations were absolutely amazing and the artists and art pieces showcased and presented were beyond my expectations. The presentation on the artist that stood out to me most would have to be Mel Rodriguez, which was presented by Harlow. Her works very much are representative of Latinx culture, life, and family. The work itself in some way reminded me of Carmen Lomas Garza, especially with Rodriguez's use of papel picado throughout some of her paintings. As well as this, her use of such vibrant colors are very inviting and pleasing to the eye. Furthermore, what is even more beautiful about the work itself is the visual representation that the artist gives to the Chicanx community. It is a beautiful and amazing feeling to see one's own culture and identity expressed and represented throughout the fine arts. 

Plascencia, Raul (Week 7)

   Claudia E. Zapata's Chicanx Graphics in the Digital Age touches upon the usage of Chicanx art and graphics within the new digital age, now having a greater, expanded audience that helps further the Chicana/o Movement. Zapata further honors the usage of digital art techniques as a legit artistic expression that redefines a white-centered art world. Digital art and media becomes more easily accessible to many through the means of digital technology. Claudia Zapata goes on to state how an artist’s ability to work within digital programs is even further heightened through the tools available such as photography and computer applications. In fact, technological advancements have brought an unprecedented amount of diversity within digital media and is a reason why it is certainly being picked up by many Chicana/o artists. One piece that called out to me was the image found on the second page of the pdf file, with the words “Justice For Layleen Polanco” written above a drawn graphic of the passed Layleen Polanco. The image itself called out to me because I had recognized the name of the woman who had passed recently between these two years. I had come across her story over twitter at the beginning of the quarantine, and learned of her unfortunate passing. Twitter, having become more hypervigilant of police brutality cases due to the Black Lives Matter movement, highlighted the death of a Afro-Latino trans woman (Layleen Polanco) inside of a prison that was caused by a lack of medical attention and negligence. Digital art and works such as these propel movements and further bring attention to the names of those who have faced injustice, serving as a mean to educate and reach a greater audience. 

Plascencia, Raul (Week 6)

     The work that caught my attention the most, would be Xandra Ibarra’s piece titled Tapatio Cock (2004). The image itself depicts a Tapatio bottle that has been inserted into a black, leather strap-on harness. The tapatio bottle itself has replaced the common phallic object that would be typically found there. Ibarra’s usage of both objects together creates a conversation on the fetishization and sexualization of Chicanos and Latinos alike. It is very significant to point out that there is a history of painting Latinos as the “Latin lover” typecast, which generally hurts the latino population in the sense that it demoralizes and objectifies brown bodies. It also plays into the humor, when Ibarra places the hot sauce bottle and in her terms the bottle itself becomes a “chile”, also referred to as a penis. 

    One question that I would like to ask the artist, Xandra Ibarra, would be: are there any instances in which you believe your messages of racialized sexual objectification portrayed through your works can be too explicit? How far can one push the boundaries of sex within art until it is considered pornography? 

Plascencia, Raul (Wiki Draft)

 Chiquitita (1998?–Present) is a drag performance artist, seamstress, and collage artist known for using her transformative couture fashions, along with her collage and design skills to bring about black and brown trans visibility. 

Biography (or Early Life and Education)

    Chiquitita was born and raised in the boroughs of Brooklyn, New York and still remains as of current resident of the area. She remained in school up until the age of fifteen, where she fell into drug addiction and ran away from her home life due to her struggles with coming to terms with her sexuality. After getting into legal and custodial troubles, Chiquitita had once again reconnected with her parents and came out to them as an openly gay man prior to any preconceptions of "trans"-ness. She once again returned to high school and found her way to sobriety when coming into contact with art dorm known as "drag". Her dedication and comfort with drag brought upon Chiquitita's truth and reality of being a transgender woman.

Art  (or Notable Works or Selected Works. Also Exhibitions, Projects, Collections)

• Head in the Clouds (2020)

• Chiquitita sticker set (2020)

• Zebra print Valentino Re-creation (2020), https://www.instagram.com/reel/CMKkGLXlGks/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=522be825-667d-4a75-bb31-35cce099c593

References

1. “Chiquitita.” GAYLETTER, 13 Jan. 2021, https://gayletter.com/chiquitita/.

2. Nguyen, Andrew. “Drag Is Back, Baby!” The Cut, The Cut, 21 June 2021, https://www.thecut.com/2021/06/brooklyns-drag-queens-and-kings-on-returning-to-the-stage.html.

3. Chiquitita, Courtesy of. “A Jaw-Dropping, 10-Foot-Tall Couture Re-Creation.” The Cut, 9 Mar. 2021, https://www.thecut.com/2021/03/drag-artist-chiquitita-made-her-own-valentino-couture-gown.html.

Further reading

• https://www.papermag.com/bushwig-2020-2648217928.html

• https://www.thecut.com/2019/05/photos-met-gayla-queer-celebration-brooklyn.html

External links

• Chiquitita; https://www.chiquitita.co

• Artist’s Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/chiquitettas/

Plascencia, Raul (Carmen Lomas Garza - Week 5)

 Carmen Lomas Garza’s Barbacoa para Cumpleaños (1993) depicts a familial gathering for a loved one’s birthday party. The overall busy scene itself is filled with joy and love, as it encompasses an entire family of thirty-three individuals plus a dog. It appears that the family is located in a beautiful, big backyard; two kids playing alongside the fire and two men are tending the grill with various meats cooking and a woman is assisting with the food. A group of three are sitting at the table surrounding a sheet cake with “feliz cumpleaños” written directly across. Two young lovers are against the tree while another man is on the other side adjusting the rope attached to the piñata that is being hit by a young girl. The rest of the family is seen to be surrounding the piñata scene in a semicircle. The image itself is intended to celebrate community and is successful through Garza’s keen attention to detail. The papel picado and piñata are indicative of the artist’s culture and are visually present throughout her artwork. Traditionally, papel picado is used in decorative ways and typically symbolizes the wind and the fragility of life as well. One can even argue that this image itself can be a visual altar/ofrenda meant to honor a past memory, it being her younger sister’s birthday party. This can be seen through the visual representation of all elements within the scene; fire which is represented through both the grill and open fire, earth through the trees and visible foods, air through the papel picado and even smoke, and water that is represented through the drinks on the table. Her ability to individualize and further depict human behavior in such detail within her artwork is amazing and a reason for her success within Chicana art.

Plascencia, Raul (Rasquachismo- Week 4)

     Rasquachismo, in the terms of Tomas Ybarra-Frausto, is an art style which reflects the attitudes of “hacer rendir las cosas”, which translates to having to make things do with what is at hand. The rasquache style itself is indicative of the resourceful nature of the lower-income Chicana/o communities that prioritizes the utilization of only readily-available resources that are further transformed into pieces of art. Typically within the realm of rasquachismo, the art style itself is very much flamboyant, as well as prefers bright colors and a sense of wanted “gaudiness/tackiness” that allows for a bold display. Again, rasquachismo puts a high emphasis on making do with a limited amount of resources, for example recycling items and using them a new source of usage is rasquachismo in itself. This can look like using coffee cans into flower pots, reusing yogurt/sour cream containers to store homemade salsas, and even car tires being used as plant containers. 

    A personal example of rasquachismo would have to be the use of recycled containers to store leftover meals, salsas, and other food items. Let me set the scene, you’re opening up the refrigerator looking for yogurt, and you reach for the first yogurt container that you find. Once opening the container, you see that it is not in fact yogurt, but instead is your mother’s homemade, tomatillo salsa. Experiences like these are quite common, but it is in fact important to recognize that the attitude of “hacer rendir las cosas” reigns not only prominent in our homes, but our cultures as well.

    Another example of rasquache art would have to be this image itself that I had seen at the “Shattered Glass” exhibit once located at the Jeffrey Deitch gallery. The artwork itself is titled “Parallel Parking” (2020) by Mario Ayala showcases a painting of an airbrushed cargo bed that is highly indicative of rasquaache artwork.

Plascencia, Raul (Chiquitita Abstracts)

 Source 1: “Chiquitita.” GAYLETTER, 13 Jan. 2021, https://gayletter.com/chiquitita/. 

    In this interview for GAYLETTER Magazine by Baby Love, the drag/ visual artist, known as Chiquitita, discusses her "trans"-ness and queerness within not only her personal life, but within the art form of drag. Chiquitita goes on to indulge in the story behind her artist/stage name and its importance to her art form as well as indicates its connection to her transgender self. 

Source 2: Nguyen, Andrew. “Drag Is Back, Baby!” The Cut, The Cut, 21 June 2021, https://www.thecut.com/2021/06/brooklyns-drag-queens-and-kings-on-returning-to-the-stage.html. 

    Within this short article by Andrew Nguyen, Chiquitita's collage that incorporated and included various photographs of other drag performers within the Brooklyn drag scene. It discusses the importance of agency within the brown and black queer/transgender community, furthermore prints were sold in order to crowdfund resources for Black trans people. 

Source 3:Chiquitita, Courtesy of. “A Jaw-Dropping, 10-Foot-Tall Couture Re-Creation.” The Cut, 9 Mar. 2021, https://www.thecut.com/2021/03/drag-artist-chiquitita-made-her-own-valentino-couture-gown.html. 

Plascencia, Raul

Growing up in Compton, California as a young queer Chicano person, the appearance of The Virgin of Guadalupe was very common and daily. Especially due to the fact that my grandparents are devout Catholics, imagery of the Virgin of Guadalupe could be found throughout the entirety of the household. La Morenita could be found displayed upon multiple photo frames throughout our home’s walls, embroidered on both pillows and rags, and even could be found wrapped around our necks on gold medallions. The Virgin’s imagery could be found even on television, on the show “La Rosa de Guadalupe” which is seen routinely by my younger sisters and my grandmother. As well as this, the religious connotations that are represented with the image alone is quite nostalgic and brings this feeling of safety and home. The image of her likeness gives me a feeling of ease and relaxation, and this could be because her image is stamped everywhere within my traditional Chicano home. For example, when times are tough, my grandmother as well as my father pray to the Virgin of Guadalupe, often dedicating an altar to her within the household, where they gift her both beautiful flowers and even light various candles.

Chiquitita

1.  Chiquitita

2. Jackie Lopez

3. Cici Segura Gonzáles

Plascencia, Raul (Raul)

 

Hello all, I am Raul Plascencia. My preferred pronouns are He/She/They. I am a third-year Sociology major with a minor in Chicanx and Central American Studies. I grew up in the city of Compton, California, a city not too far from the UCLA campus but is rather the complete opposite of the West Los Angeles area. Going to school as a kid in this area was rather hard in the sense that it lacked public funding and had scarce resources.Textbooks were torn-apart and not up to date, and classes were filled to capacity with students. This further inspired me to pursue the field of sociology in order to help combat this failing education system within my community but other lower-socioeconomic communities as well. 

My interests in this class definitely developed a few months back once I had visited the Jeffrey Deitch art exhibition out in Los Angeles which showcased and highlighted the works of Black and Brown artists. This trip to the art exhibition was monumental in the sense that I had never once in my life felt represented or reflected in the Eurocentric art forms that are praised and shown in American museums. Multiple pieces throughout the Jeffrey Deitch exhibition depicted queerness and Chicanx pride that I had for once in my life resonated with. Upon creating my schedule for this fall quarter, I found this class. This was only a sign to further enrich my knowledge with more Chicana art and artists. 

(The picture I chose was also of me in front of my favorite piece at the Jeffrey Deitch exhibit. It reminded me of the mercados located around my old neighborhood.)