Carmen Lomas Garza

Carmen Lomas Garza and her artworks are representative of the chicano experience and I find the most personal connection with Tamalada. The piece is centered around her family and they’re gathered at the table with each member taking part in the process of wrapping and stuffing the tamales. It’s reminiscent of memories that I hold within my own home where my family and I helped my mom with the tamal process. 

The image she paints is enough to provoke feelings of warmth, as her choice of color brings life to the scene. There’s an emphasis of detail on every object shown in the image, with most having significance to the chicano experience, even the blue spotted olla is tied heavily with my own memories. Garza puts focus on the style of clothing too, which heavily influences the actual beauty behind the painting, as each member and their choice of clothes is exclusive to them and represents their sense of person. Her grandma can be seen wearing a blue house dress with black low heel shoes, an outfit that is in tune with what my own grandmother wore, and across her stands her grandfather who is in blue overalls with his sleeves tucked in. The scene feels as though it came from my own memory and Garza’s artworks are of the few that can capture those emotions.