Week 4 made an already enjoyable class even more so. Any time we are able to actually hear from he artist's mouth in their own words, makes the lessons stand out more. First we watched the video of Carmen Lomas Garza giving a speech at the Smithsonian. The depth she went into about her own history and upbringing, made her images easier to understand and more relatable. As she went through the selected works giving detail about the medium, the artwork, and the process for creating and installing each one was a sight to see. Reading the book Carmen Lomas Garza by Constance Cortez, I saw many of the same works of art she spoke about in the video. Reading the book, looking at the piece, and then applying her own words made it easier to understand the works. And for me, that made them all the more powerful.
After that, we had the pleasure to her from Ofelia Esparza. Her story of her life and how she came to be such a well known and awarded altarist, was very interesting. Not to mention, very impressive. She grew up with several strong female warriors to look up to. This showed in much of her artwork that we saw slides of in class. Learning from those warriors gave her the strength to raise a family, have a career, and then have another career. The photos of the altars, big and small, were impressive. Hearing about all the work that goes into the whole process was great to hear as well. But I guess my main take away from her presentation, life, and story, is to honor the past. We are who we are, because of those who came before us. As she stated, "There is still so much left to do."
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