Yolanda M. Lopez

Chicana Feminist Yolanda M. Lopez's influential artwork has drastically transformed Chicana art as well as the Chicana/Latina image. By reworking the image of  Virgin of Guadalupe, she has created a platform for Chicanas to reclaim their image and leave problematic cultural traditions behind. Davalos describes the themes of Lopez’s work as feminist, political and committed to representing Chincana experiences with the current barriers faced by Mexican Americans in the U.S. as well with internal issues in their own communities. The Guadalupe Series have reconstructed the Chicana image and have assisted in sparking the Chicana feminist movement.

Another piece to be analyzed in the Guadalupe is The Portrait of the Artist as the Virgin of Guadalupe. The image of a woman striding with muscular legs also represents the power as well as the strength to be free from society’s restraints on Mexican American women. The woman is also straggling the snake in her palm, again, exhibiting her power. An image illuminating mental and physical strength not only affects how Chicanas see themselves but also how their own community does as well. This unconventional and uncommon image is what brings change to a community and Lopez is inciting that with this image.