WK5: Ofelia Esparza

I sincerely appreciate Ofelia Esparza and her daughter Rosana making time to come into class and share about Ofelia’s career and life. Ofelia mentioned that her influence was Guadalupe Aviles, her mentor was Josefina Quezada, her inspiration was Mother Earth. We looked over a few of her pieces but there was specific emphasis placed on La de los Milagros” (2004), “Chiapaneca” (2008), and “El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de Los Angeles” (2008). Her altar, “El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles” (2008) is featured in the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles. I did not know that there was a specific genre of art that focuses on altars, but it was interesting to learn about an altarista. It was especially interesting to learn that she was a cultural consultant for the Disney film, Coco. The bridge between the worlds of the living and the dead was based off her advice and the “Seven Sisters” (Pleides constellation). A very funny thing that Ofelia said when describing Sister Karen when she was talking about her experience at the Self-Help Center, she called her “a nun like none other.” One big takeway that ties back to altares and art is that according to Ofelia and her ancestors: there are three deaths, “the first is when you take your last breath, the second is when you are buried, and the third is when you are forgotten.” I think that artists especially stay alive through their art and the memories that they provoke in their collectors and audiences.