Spencer, Tadeo

Hello! My name is Tadeo Spencer (he/him/his), and I'm a junior Computational Biology major and Chicana/o Studies minor. I work in a bioinformatics research lab, where I use computer programming and math to study the transfer of information from DNA to proteins. Scientific research requires a lot of creativity, but I've always loved doing things that require some technicality and some creativity. My hobbies include writing and playing guitar, so although I'm not a visual artist, I enjoy working on art in my free time.

I've lived in the South Bay of Los Angeles for the past six years, but I actually grew up in the Central Valley (Bakersfield and Delano). Because of my life experience in the Central Valley, I've always loved art that uses imagery from the farmworkers' movement, which took place there. I haven't been to an art exposition or museum in a long time, but I would love to visit the Cheech Marin Center sometime.

I am Salvadoran, Mexican, and white. My mother immigrated to the US from El Salvdor as a child to flee from civil war. As such, El Salvador has always felt like a fictional, almost mythical place to me - something I hear about but have never seen, and can probably never visit. I love Salvadoran culture, especially the delicious food (pupusas, anyone?), and I always seek to learn more about El Salvador. That includes art! The Mexican side of my family descends from the Tarahumara (Rarámuri, as they call themselves). Most of my exposure to Chicanx art has been through books and classes (my favorites are "Last Supper of Chicano Heroes" by José Antonio Burciaga and Judy Baca's Great Wall), and I have noticed how skewed it is toward Chicanos (male) and Aztec imagery (not other indigenous Mexicans like the Rarámuri). That's part of the reason why I'm so excited for this class! It's our duty to expose ourselves to different perspectives/experiences and elevate them.