wood, house paint, hand-painted fabric, lace, cinder blocks, digital video
72 × 108 × 46
The home-like structure represents the inner and outer struggles of maintaining a hybrid identity. The only color emerges from hand-painted fabric referencing Mexican oil tablecloths for the intimate space they create for conversation, and nourishment. The fabric, known for its durability, bursts through the whitewashed facade signifying resilience against external influences. Collaborative video with dancer Sara Herrera.
Detail
Detail
Cortez Gonzales and Herrera articulate their Mexican American experience with assimilation as Mexican-Americans. The video montage honors the artists’ cultural past. The first segment features a woman embroidering a Texas bluebonnet, recounting a story of a Singer sewing machine's link to proving U.S. citizenship. Photos of Cortez Gonzales’ relatives intertwine with music from her father's band. The second and third clips by Herrera depict her performing a dance as she is immersed in a scene from her grandparents' home, evoking a sense of being transported there regardless of her whereabouts.
A work based on the “English Only” law enacted from 1918 until 1973 in Texas making it illegal to speak any language other than English in classrooms and in some public spaces. Through the domestic action of hanging sheets, Cortez Gonzales performs the psychological and emotional trauma that can still be felt today by generations of those who came after. Though, no longer set into law, attitudes of discrimination continue in an anti-immigrant age. The embroidered Spanish words translate to history, pride, family, language, tradition, and me, — what her ancestors and many immigrants put on the line in order to peacefully participate in public American life. Each word holds s much weight hanging in the elements of rain and wind. As a mother, a woman, and a descendent of her own family, Cortez Gonzales continues to carry the load.
resin, mylar, graphite, wood, paint, sewn fabric
19 x 11 x 2 in / 12 x 6 x 2 in
photo credit: Melissa Gamez Herrera