2020 Olsen, Eric: Week 9- Barbara Carrasco

This week in class, I was very frustrated and saddened by the story of censorship of Barbara Carrasco's mural 'L.A. History: A Mexican Perspective' (1981) which was kept from public view for 27 years. Carrasco's work featured indigenous themes and imagery that rejected the historical socially accepted narrative of the conquest and honored black children who were victims of L.A.P.D. brutality. For challenging the state, Carrasco's work was barred from exhibition and kept from the public for decades. Online I was able to see the mural in its entirety and I was amazed by the size, intricacy and bright colors. The way in which the stories were painted reminded me of reading story books as a kid and understanding what was happening just by looking at the illustrations. In this way, I think Carrasco's work is really accessible for people familiar and unfamiliar with the stories she is sharing and contrasts a lot of modern art that I see and feel no connection to. The story of the mural's censorship is just another reminder of how Chicana artists endure structural barriers not only due to lack of funds and gendered expectations but also based on the political content innate to their work.