Xandra Ibarra is a Chicane visual and performance artist. She works within gender, ethnic, and LGBTQ+ studies. Her works have been cited and referenced in many academic texts. To be honest, Ibarra’s art is not for me so one of the few pieces of art that I didn’t dislike from Ibarra is the photography series Lo Norteño (2008). The series includes 3 photographs: one of a man in what appears to be a drained pool, a picture of an industrial/urban setting with the framework of a drive-in screen, and a woman in her front yard/garden. My favorite of the three is the last one since it appears to have the most meaning. The composition utilizes the grates of the fence, so it looks like the female subject is “behind bars.” Ibarra is invoking the iconography of prison in a garden setting that otherwise looks serene. There also appears to be statues of cherubs or angels which references the Christian/Catholic elements found in much of Chicane art.
I would compare Ibarra’s art to the aesthetic movement that advocates for “art for art’s sake” in that I find her art to be offensive for offending’s sake. I do not see a deeper meaning to most of the art that is worth the deeply unsettling construction. I think art can be provocative and unique without being gratuitously vulgar. The art is eye-catching and attention-grabbing, but for all the wrong reasons, in my view. I believe Yolanda Lopez does a much better job of creating art that is provocative and political without rejecting aesthetic value.
Some questions that I would have for Ibarra are:
1. Why did you choose to use an alias?
2. Do you think the offensive content and form of your art prevents a larger audience from interacting with your messages?
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