Preparing for BFA Show

So within these last two weeks since my last art show I’ve had to jumpstart on paintings for my BFA show. Considering the amount of people graduating in the program this semester we will only be able to have one piece each for the show. I didn’t want to put all my eggs in one basket so I have started two paintings and I’m planning on starting at least another 2 this week/weekend. That way I’ll have a variety of paintings to choose from.

As always I start my paintings by interviewing a woman. I gather information regarding her life and experiences within the low rider world. I also consider landmarks that are important to the individuals, as well as city maps, signs, etc that relate to her. Then I do some quick sketches and settle on a composition I like. So here are the beginning stages of two paintings I have going on right now. I’ll be posting updates on the progress as we inch towards the BFA show.

Here’s some background on the two paintings: The one with the figure already drawn in is based on a lowrider woman named Tina who owns “La Nube”. She has owned her ‘62 Impala for about 13 years now. Tina, along with her husband, is the co-founder of Loyal Alliance based out of Harbor Area. This car club is gender inclusive, slowly but surely we are beginning to see more women being allowing into car clubs. It’s even more amazing that Tina is a co-founder of a car club. As I interviewed her she emphasized how men tend to not take women lowriders seriously. Often times losing interest when finding out that a woman owns the car. Tina is very much involved in the community and highlights her efforts to participate in all women’s cruise nights. She also stated that she loves owning her car because she knows it can be motivational to other women who want to own and cruise a car just like her.

The other painting that is still an under sketch is based off of a lowrider woman named Monique who owns “Baby Lincoln”. Monique has actually been the subject of another painting but her figure was not incorporated into the composition. Now that I’ve gotten better at incorporating the figure I’ve decided to do another painting based on her. This time I want to treat this as a diptych with the other canvas being focused on her mother who has been part of the lowrider community for much longer than Monique. This could illustrate the family values and generational history that runs deep in lowrider culture. Monique has been around lowrider her whole life. Her father is the founder of Elusive car club based out of Pico Rivera. Monique was voted in as treasurer of the club. She’s a single mother and her son is also throughly involved in the lowrider community. They are currently restoring a Lincoln for her son. Ultimately lowriding has greatly impacted Monique’s life.

I look forward to further illustrating these women, their cars, and their lives to this audience. It’s deeply important to me that people within the lowriding community as well as outside become more aware of the importance that women lowrider’s play.

Fuerza: A Duo Painting Exhibition

“Fuerza” meaning “force” in Spanish; in this case, describes the empowerment and ambition​ ​of female-identified artists. This collection of work expresses several ways that women are celebrated through painting. Vivian and Jacqueline both speak on relevant topics regarding femininity, yet do so in opposing ways.

Although both artists use dynamic color palettes, Vivian uses these palettes to create sensuous abstractions emphasizing the female form through draped bodies, while Jacqueline uses geometric patterns in conjunction with the representational components of her work to bring attention to women within the Chicano world of lowriding. Because lowriding is a predominantly male subculture, women in this scene are defying traditional gender stereotypes by denying the sexual appeal attached to women. Jacqueline references the murals seen in latinx communities which focus on religion and political issues to comment on how women are seen as divine but juxtaposes it by using it as a feminist statement. On the opposite side of the spectrum, Vivian’s work is meant to embrace these characteristics that have been deemed “feminine”, such as using variations of pink in her palettes, as well as, the inclusion of organic flowing shapes. She uses fabrics and textiles as the subject of her work because they have used to either accentuate or conceal the physical attributes of the female form.

Upon observing these visual systems, the viewer is asked to think about the relationship between changing structures and stimulating sensuality. Ultimately both artists create visually different work ranging from geometric and representation to organic and intuitive, yet both use similar color schemes. Overall this creates visual comparisons allowing the viewers to switch between artwork without drastic disruption.