Week 10: End of the Class Reflection

    As for someone who classifies themselves as Chicano but never truly went into depth about trying to understand the term or history of this word and what meaning it holds, taking this class was one of the best decisions I made this quarter. Overall, this class was able to educate me more about the history and in general about myself since I share a lot of aspects this class talked about. As for specifics, learning more about Yolanda Lopez was great as I knew very little about her but have heard of her name. Now I am able to understand a lot of what she has done for the community and how it strongly affected our environment in the Chicano story. Along with this, I am also glad to have learned about Carmen Lomas Garza as she was also a great deal to our community. I believe the most interesting and great topic in this course was the artist presentations. I think this assignment was a way to truly bring out and give voice to the rising artist that may have impacted our community and environment but have not fully been reported on by higher media. This assignment was a way to praise them and appreciate their contribution to the Chicano story. Along with this, the Wikipedia page was another great assignment as it is something I never imagined myself doing. Creating a wiki page, being able to edit it, design it, and post it for the public to see is and was truly a great learning experience. Not only that the technical edits and learning to do “simple” things like adding a footnote, adding references, or even citing were great tools that I learn or will learn.  I would say, the two artists I learned about, the presentation on the rising artists, and creating a wiki page were the more benefitting assignment in this class.

Week 9: Chicana Futurism

The reading “Deus ex Machina: traditions, technology, and the Chicanafuturist Art of Marison C. Martinez” written by Catherine S. Ramirez, truly explores a different form of art that combines and locates Hispanas in narratives of science and technology while also inserting science and technology into narratives of and about Hispanas. Catherine also goes in-depth with Martinez’s artwork that challenges racist, classist, and sexist stereotypes that primitivize Hispanas and excludes them from the core of science and technology. Catherine personal definitions of “Chicanafuturism” is the “Chicano cultural production that attends to cultural transformation resulting from new and everyday technologies…that excavates, creates, and alters narratives of identity, technology, and the future; that interrogates the promises of science and technology; and the refines humanism and the human.” (157-158). Since Martinez’s artwork is primarily focused, some believe that their work offers nothing new and others see her work as original and argue that it “breaks from and challenges...[traditions]” (158). Thought Catharine believes that it “preserves, breaks from, and challenges the Santo tradition precisely because it is legible part o it.” (158). More about Martinez’s work is that it expresses the value, price, and necessity of change. Its inspiration from traditional forms and practices truly allows the direction of the sight to turn back and look at the past. While doing all this it also dares to imagine the ways of the future, by looking directly and confronting the problem of e-waste.

An interesting detail added was how in recent years, African American intellectuals and artists have focused the relationships of African Americans to science and technology using principles of what is known as “Afrofuturism”. In this concept, instead of limiting their focus to both computer software and hardware, they try to focus on the myriad ways “people of color produce, transform, appropriate, and consume technologies in their everyday lives” (157). A lot of the technologies that are included are cellular phones, pagers, karaoke home systems, bikes, and much more.  On the other hand, while Afrofuturism reflects diasporic experience, Chicanafuturism articulates colonial and postcolonial histories. 

Week 8 : ¡Printing the Revolution! Virtual Conversation Series

    Since I was fortunate enough to attend the virtual meeting on the Printing the Revolution conversation series, my post will be based on that. There were a few artist’s stories and lives that caught my attention and that I found interesting. I will be mentioning three artists that spoke that day and reiterate their stories. One artist that I enjoyed learning and hearing was Malaquias Montaya. He was raised by a single mother and grew up in San Joaquin Valley in Fresno. Amongst the area, he grew up in a multi-cultural community that included Japanese Americans and African Americans. Apart from his background, he was known for creating posters for many events. One event that was captivating was the walkout after senior graduation that consisted of Hispanic parents and students leaving when the president began his speech. Another artist that I enjoyed listening to was Favianna Rodriguez as she was one of the female artists that had an integrating conversion. She was raised in Oakland, California a city that, at the time, was going through a war on drugs. Her family background includes her father being an aphro-Peruvian and in general being from Peru. She stated that when she was a teenager a prop, specifically prop 187, had passed which was the anti-immigration law in 1994. She used posters to help with events like this to educate and express her feelings towards events like this as well. One astonishing moment she experienced was creating a poster during a democratic convention when Obama was president, that stated: “Migration is beautiful”. She also went in a little bit about where she lived that completely her life. One place being Mexico City for two years. Here she learned a lot about the Aztec, Incas, and other communities. Because of this, a lot of her work reflects celebrating indigenous and African roots. One part of the conversation that truly opened my eyes was when the conversation steered toward abortions and how living in a Latinx life is like. She briefly mentioned how Latin families have always given messages like “close your legs”, “don’t get pregnant”, and “don’t have sex” which was specifically targeted the women in the family. She then brought it upon herself and talked about how women are allowed to do what they want with their bodies and one example she gave was the abortions she had in her life. As for her recent and future work, she has started using wood and laser cutting.

Favianna Rodriguez

Week 7: Graffiti

“Graffiti is Art” by Charles “Chaz” Bojorquez from Chicano and Chicana Art: A Critical Anthropology goes in-depth about graffiti and the history behind the word but also expresses how this visual expression is a form of art. Graffiti is stated to be a language to express our own voices and vision but also personally engage the energy of our vision and can discover the soul of art. These are some of the words that Charles states in order to define the idea of graffiti which I find to be very accurate and interesting. The reason why I find this definition so interesting is that, and also stated in the reading, graffiti has always had a bad connotation. What I mean by this is that it has always been associated with vandalism, destructive behavior, and a “symbol of the loss of moral control in our society” (117).  Those who continue to associate this kind of art to be these foul terms, have declared that this form of expression is not art and “worthless”. Fortunately, there has been a growth of pro-graffiti where they respect and support the art form. While there are supporters, there will always be those who oppose the idea of this art form. This group of individuals thinks the worst of those who commit to this art form. For example, the writer states that this group imagined these artists to be worthy of “being sent to prison, whipping, or being shot to death by anti-graffiti vigilantes (117). When I was reading this part of the text, I was in utter shock that these kinds of phrases would be said by certain individuals. I have always observed graffiti to be an artistic value and I am grateful that the city I live in, Los Angeles, has a great variety of people’s personal expression using spray cans. I think without this art expression, the public would be naked and less valuable since I believe this brings character to a location.

Venice Graffiti Art

Week 6: Rasquachismo

    Before defining the terms Rasquachismo, I noticed that this word was completely new to me before this class. After learning the definition, it is something that I can definitely relate to as something my family and I commit ourselves to. To begin with, Rasquachismo was first noted as a word with a bad connotation. It was a way to describe a lower class from a higher-class perspective because of what the word describes which brings me to the definitions. In simple terms, Rasquachismo is doing the most that you can do from the least that you have. It is bringing together different tastes that have no way of staying alone and bringing them together to create something great. In the article I read they describe it as a way “to posit bawdy, spunky consciousness seeking to subvert and turn ruling paradigms upside down- a witty, irrelevant, and impertinent posture that recodes and moves outside established boundaries” (85). They also described it as an attitude and taste moreover as an idea or style. I think that is the most accurate way to describe what it is to be rasquachismo. As it is not something to think about like bring ideas together to create something but more of looking at what you have and deciding how to integrate each part in order to complement each taste. 

    Amongst my family, I would say that my mom has this way of being more than any of us. She will find a purpose with the limited resources we have. Although I do not have a picture of my own, an image I would like to show is what I have observed and plan on doing as a future project. I saw this idea in Mexico when I went on a trip and thought it was such a cool and interesting form of art while also implanting this rasquachismo concept. The people who create this, gather old license plates and cut them out to spell out a word or phrase that is meaningful. I have seen some that say “Welcome” and even “restroom” instead of buying a sign to indicate where the restrooms are.

Week 5: La Virgen de Guadalupe

 As a Chicanx and someone who used to consider themselves Catholic I know and have experiences with Virgen of Guadalupe. The image of the Virgin of Guadalupe has resonated throughout my life since my mother is a strong-felt and devoted catholic. She has always associated her life with the image and because of it, we have many of that kind of artwork, whether they are paintings or photographs of the Virgin of Guadalupe all around my home. My mom, from a very young age, has always one of the traditional “milestones’ a catholic goes through and the most recent that I had just completed was my confirmation. During the years of going and completed these “milestones’ as a catholic, I learned a lot about the different figures in the religion, one of them being the Virgen of Guadalupe. 

One year when I went on a trip to Mexico City, I was able to visit the Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral which is a catholic cathedral that dedicates itself solely to the Virgen of Guadalupe. Here I also learned a lot of the history and the Virgen de Guadalupe including the cloak where she appeared after Juan Diego was asked by a bishop for proof of this Virgen of Guadalupe. Although I have disassociated myself from the religion and her image, it is still something very prominent in my family. I still find the knowledge that I have gained through years of having that aspect in my life very interesting and I am always open to learning and understand about her. I have never really been exposed to learning about the Virgen of Guadalupe in an academic setting besides learning about overall religion but nothing specific. The only time I was exposed to was through family and those “classes” I had to take to pass the different “milestones’ in the catholic religion. Because of this, I enjoyed last week’s discussion lectures because they brought up the Virgen of Guadalupe but in a different context. Hearing Yolanda Lopez talks about the Virgen of Guadalupe in that different context was something new and interesting to learn about. Overall, I think my experience with the Virgen of Guadalupe was interesting to learn about regardless of whether I follow through with her image or not. 

Week 4 Post: ¡Printing the Revolution! Exhibition Preview

I chose to write this post on the ¡Printing the Revolution! Exhibition Preview

    The sole purpose of this virtual exhibition was to provide a great understanding of the American experiences and inclusively view America and American art. The show also provides a powerful artwork from the 60s to today that shines on both the good and bad sides of American history. Not only that it shows the struggle that we underwent along with the struggles we continue to face right now. 

    An interesting detail about Carme was that she had joined the Smithsonian American art museum about 10 years ago and since then doubled the Latinx artwork. She worked alongside Claudia Zapata when writing these articles which ended with a big success as these prints are filled with knowledge, history, and the development of the community from the art perspective. 

    The largest section of the exhibition was the reimagining national and global histories of how artists visualize American history based on the experience of black, indigenous, and people of color. Out of the entire preview experience, this section, I feel, was the most compelling. It began with Cuban revolution and Vietnam war artists like Malaquias Montoya that spoke about issues like colonialism, U.S intervention, dictatorship, and oppression. 

    When Carmen and Claudia were in the depths of creating this wonderful experience for all of us to share, they realized a few things. One being that artists used portraiture as a window into history. Another detail they noticed was that artists combined text and image to shine on those who make a change and those who altered global history. The final detail was that artists, in their work, portrayed figures who fought against Spanish colonialism, activist or racial justice, and labor leaders.     

    Towards the end of the exhibitions, it went more in-depth about interventions and digital innovations exploring the subversive ways artists inserted work into the public. They also shared how graphics changed in the digital age and what artist did when this was rising in popularity. Some of my favorites included Chico Gonzalez and Zeke Pena whose artwork supplemented reality technology by adding a level of public interaction to their prints. 

    Overall, this was a fine experience to learn and explore the hidden gems in the Latinx/Chicanx art perspective. 

Week 3 Post: Diaz Infante, Amy

Diaz Infante, Amy 

    Diaz Infante, Amy (1983-present) is a visual artist that also has a background in printmaking. She is known for being an educator at Youth Art Exchange, the Mission Cultural Center's Mission Grafica, Opera Piccola, and the Rhode Island School of Design.

Amy has a BA in Arts from Yale Univerisity, and MPA, with honors, from the Rhode Island School of Design, and a Collegiate teaching certificate from Brown University. She also is an alumna of the Djerassi Resident Artist Program and a 2015 community trustee in the leadership San Francisco Program.

    She has her website filled with artwork, accomplishments, and a timeline of just about everything she has done in her artistic career. The links as follows: Amy Díaz. www.amydiaz-infante.com/.

Hablamos Juntos/Together We Speak: Un Dialogo Visual/ A visual Dialog

Who Gets to Call it Chicano Art?

Refrence: 

1.     SiteAdministrator. “Hablamos Juntos/Together We Speak: Un Diálogo Visual/A Visual Dialog.” Pajaro Valley Arts, 24 July 2018, pvarts.org/hablamos-juntos-together-we-speak-un-dialogo-visual-a-visual-dialog/. 

2. “Who Gets To Call It Chicano Art? – Curator: Manuel Rios.” Axis Gallery, axisgallery.org/home/exhibitions/who-gets-to-call-it-chicano-art/.

Extra Credit: “Change = Action/Time: Generational Activism in Chicanx and Latinx Art” Virtual Symposium

            The event that I was fortunate enough to attend was the “Art of the State” hosted by the Monterey Museum of Art. This was hosted on Saturday, Jan 9, 2021, through three different sessions between the hours of 10:00am till 5:00pm. I attended the 10:00am-12:00pm session where I was able to listen to Chicanx/Latinx artist’s life stories, their work of art, and their input on worldwide problems these artists face. Some of the speakers I was able to listen to were Juan Felipe Herrera, Amalia Mesa, Ralph D’ Oliverira, Carme Leon, and more. 

One of the most capturing moments in the live session was when Victor and Irene, who are both Chicanx/Latinx artists, explained their obstacles during their life. They explained how Victor’s art, “Drinking with Buddha”, was vandalized since it was an art project done in and for the public. He mentioned how when he noticed this then decided to take action and turn this art form into something more expressive. He worked on the artwork and ended with more colorful, expressive, and even more beautiful artwork to give back to the public and the individuals who vandalized. Some of the questions they addressed that I thought were noteworthy were “How has Chicana art changed in California over the year” and “Have you seen a change in how people view murals and public art on the streets?”. The artists were able to give their input which I believe were all amazing answers. 

Another story I thought was empowering was when Irene and Victor shared their experience about how they always felt excluded. They briefly mentioned about even though someone may not like or support their artwork, it is always important to support the artist. I think this kind of knowledge and way of thinking should be embedded not only in this perspective but in other areas of our world. Overall, this opportunity to choose this conversation between artists was wonderful and something I would attend in the future.

Week 2 Post : Claudia E. Zapata Reading

Question: How has this digital art revolution affect and influence the lives of Chicanx and Latinx individuals and has it replaced any other forms of artmaking? 

Answer: In the Claudia E. Zapata article, Claudia brought light to this new form of art-making that soon began to grow in interest during the mid-1960s. She states that this new practice of art has not replaced the other forms of Chicanx visual forms. Some examples that remain lively are political print and public murals. This new platform of art has affected and influenced the Chicanx community by allowing these individuals to diversify graphic output. Hence, this new form of art has greatly opened new ways to become creative to continue advocating objectives of protesting injustice, educating, or self-reflecting cultures as Claudia stated. In today's time, these artists are now involving themselves in technological exchange centers, allocating their work online, and using new forms of technology like VR to broaden the interpretation of the artwork. Meaning that this new form of art platform has influenced the artists to further expand their skills to find new ways to send the appropriate message to any audience. This new era of artform has not stopped or slowed down paper-based graphics. Claudia mentions how instead, it has only offered new opportunities to visualize artwork such as political resistance. From what Claudia is mentioning it sounds that this revolution of the art form has truly only benefitted and has little to no negative contribution to these artist's lives. This was one of the main takeaways I received from reading this article. Another valid point Claudia mentioned to further answer the question on how it has influenced Chicanx artists is when she states, how these artists have actively participated, unearthed, and connected these digitally informed efforts to start a foundation of Chicanx study. This just means that when Chicanx were hit with this new platform, they collectively worked together to create a new lens of Chicanx study.

Magana, Ariana

Hello, 

My name is Ariana Magana, which is also my preferred name, or you can call me by my nickname Ary and my pronoun is she/her. 

Both my parents are from Mexico and although I was born here in the US, I grew up in the Mexican Culture. This just makes the course that much more exciting to take and learn about as I am unfamiliar with this perspective. 

To understand a little bit more about me, I am a first-year transfer and my major is Ecology, Evolution, and Behavioral biology. I hope to travel the world to research and understand the unknown about animal interactions amongst their environments. Although this past quarter, I learn a lot from the marine life perspective, I hope to study these interactions from a terrestrial perspective. This field requires a lot of group work, which I enjoy doing as I can be a social person after I surpass my shyness. This career choice also can involve a lot of traveling, which is one of the many things I want to achieve as I age. I especially want to travel to tropical places as there are more diverse ecosystems and where the scenery is unforgettable. 

UCLA, Royce Hall 

  As for the reading, I thought it was a great eye-opener to fully understand how Chicana artists involved themselves after formally been known as a derogatory term, to become this new concept of change, expression, and movement. Especially how Chicano artists were immersed in civil rights activism and created work to define themselves as racialized groups. This not only gave light to themselves but impacted people's lives, communities, and those who had/have no voice. 

Something else I noticed was the number of visual graphics in the article where the artwork is explained, why they were created, and what message they were trying to convey. There were some familiar artworks but some were new to me that I had no idea gave such impact. For example, Yolanda Lopez's "Free Los Siete" where it was advocating for some Latino individuals who were accused of killing a police officer in San Francisco. 

On a final note, the Chicano movement was a time where the artist used their skill, voice, and ambitious characteristics to create influential images to advocate for change and assemble people. These showed dynamic, emotional, and encouraging lettering or images to capture one's eye and attention. This attention-grabbing mechanism, got the views of many which would go viral and public. This then allowed voices to magnify and change what is needed or simply educate those around.