Week 10 Reflection

Even though it’s only my second quarter at UCLA, when I signed up for this class I thought it was going to be like the other art history classes I’d taken here already. I knew it was something I wanted to learn about, but the format of this class ended up being far more fulfilling compared to the other art history courses I’ve taken and I feel like really helped me reflect on my own cultural past and how art and culture functions in a far deeper context for me personally and other women. First, learning about Chicana artists and the levels of intersectionality involved in the development of Chicanx aesthetics has given me a much deeper understanding of common iconography and how it all functions together. Also, I was exposed to so many new artists whose work I absolutely loved compared to some of the other art history courses I’ve taken where I haven’t felt this way. One part that I thought really added to this course as well was the sketch books. I think it added a form of learning that allowed us to explore our own lenses and creativity in the same way the artist we were learning about were. I wish there were more classes like this in the art history department and that more heavily involved artists and even the practice of art like this class did because I really feel like it added a deeper level of understanding and embodied knowledge that other courses I’ve taken completely lack.