Rasquachismo and Domesticana -Week 4

Rasquachismo is said to be an attitude or sensibility rather than a specific idea or confined style. Initially used as a negative and derogatory term, artists have been reclaiming rasquachismo, which comes from the word rasquache used to signify low class and bad taste. Artist Amalia Mesa-Bains describes the reclaiming of rasquachismo to be a celebration of “the underdog”, utilizing inventiveness, defiance, and a survivalist attitude. This includes art that uses unlikely objects and mediums to create art that is as much about the art as it is about the backstory or the customization of an object.

Domesticana is similar to rasquachismo in the way it reclaims and redefines aspects of identity but explores themes of the domestic world, subverting expectations by combining elements of domesticity with elements of ruin and loss. It is born out of a resistance to majority culture and its expectations for women. Domesticana exists at a juxtaposition between the celebration of domestic life and the destruction of the oppressive elements that occur within it. Much of the work stems from home altars and religious memorabilia, and can be created with found objects and reconstructions.