My very first Art History paper was written about this part of Yolanda Lopez’s triptych during my sophomore year at University of San Francisco. On the morning of my research presentation, I frantically woke up (I had been up all night reviewing my notes for the presentation) and thought “ANíMATE CHICANITA!”
The class was “Women & Art” taught by Paula Birnbaum. I remember going to her unsure of who to focus on and expressing my frustration that there were so few artists included in the study of “Art History” that reflected the history I had been taught growing up in Fresno, California as a 2nd Generation/3rd Generation (depends which side you count from) Mexican-American Pocha. Paula introduced me to Yolanda Lopez’s work and I later gave several presentations on the artist’s work- one of which landed me one of four year-long PAID internships at the Metropolitan Museum of Art working in the Education department.
So here I am in New York, living in Brooklyn and starting my first blog as a way to organize my thoughts and remind myself to stay anímada because just as Yolanda is in this auto-retrato, I am strong, smart, capable, and fearless as I hurdle over traditional expectations and rules of the past.
Anímate Chicanita! 