LAST RIDE: Andria Morales formerly Andria Bibiloni

UPDATE: visit AreYouMyOther.com to see Bibiloni's mass card.Have you ever Googled Puerto Rican funeral? If you haven't then I suggest you do.  And if you live in Philadelphia or in the surrounding area, you should attend Andria Morales and Beth Beverly's collaborative performance Last Ride.

LAST RIDE: collaborative performance-based artwork by Andria Morales & Beth Beverly. Inspired by Puerto Rican funeral celebrations & taxidermy traditions - 03/27/2011 @ The Rotunda @ 3:00pm-5:00pm

LAST RIDEPerformance and receptionSunday March 27, 20113-5pmThe Rotunda, 4014 Walnut St., PhiladelphiaLAST RIDE is a collaborative performance-based artwork by Andria Morales and Beth Beverly.  Inspired by Puerto Rican funeral celebrations and taxidermy traditions respectively, the artists have found a common interest in death.  Using the Rotunda’s church-like interior as a backdrop, the artist’s work will invite viewers to experience mourning as a celebration.Andria Morales (formerly Andria Bibiloni) explores the divide between art representative of culture, and art produced from within a cultural community. By immersing herself in situations where cultural identity is consequential, she aims to provoke viewers into a confrontation and analysis of their own preconceptions. The resulting work is multidisciplinary, consisting of mixed media sculptures, self-portraits, performance based videos, and site-specific installations.  Andria Morales’s work has been exhibited at Labor K1 in Berlin, Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Projects Gallery in Philadelphia, the Ice Box in Philadelphia, and the CUE Art Foundation in New York. In 2008 she was awarded a Joan Mitchell MFA Grant for her work in mixed media sculpture and installation. Andria is currently a resident in the 40th St. Artist in Residence Program, and teaches at Tyler School of Art.Beth Beverly is a State- and Federally-licensed taxidermist who has a BFA from Tyler School of Art and graduated from the Pocono Institute of Taxidermy with high marks. Ms. Beverly is passionate about using every part of an animal and being thankful for the ultimate sacrifice each creature makes to land both in her studio and on her plate. She has won numerous awards for her taxidermy creations, including Best in Show at the fifth annual Carnivorous Nights taxidermy contest in New York.  Beth’s work has been exhibited at Bahdee Bahdu Gallery, James Oliver Gallery, Wilbur Vintage Boutique and has been featured in a plethora of fashion & art blogs.Admission is FREE

Escobar-Morales

Artist Statement and BioEscobar-Morales is a team comprised of Maya Escobar and Andria Morales. The two artists, based in Chicago and Philadelphia respectively, have been working together over the Internet since 2010. They produce digital media and performance art that explores the role of self-representation in visual culture and its ability to deconstruct ingrained ideological conventions. By locating their performances online where they are free from restrictions of time and place, Escobar-Morales is able to concurrently enact multiple personas while simultaneously creating a unified hybrid self.Maya Escobar was born in Chicago, IL in 1984.  Andria Morales was born in 1982 in New York, NY.  Escobar received a BFA from the School of the Art Institue of Chicago (2007) and an MFA from Washington University in St. Louis (2009); Morales received a BA from the University of Pennsylvania (2004) and an MFA from Tyler School of Art, Temple University (2008).

Chicago Does Jibaritos a Cyber Banquet in East Rogers Park

This Saturday my friends and I participated in a Cyber Banquet (virtually) hosted by artists Lisa Link and Io Palmer. Here is a re-post of my post on Lisa and Io's site serve & project, documenting the evenings proceedings.

Cyber Banquet hosted in Chicago at Sandi and Stacey's apartment.Follow the Tamalero on Twitter http://twitter.com/tamaletracker.Caldo de Pollo in the making.[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/v/nPr_n5PJ7a0]Chicago Does Jibaritos[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/v/Nd5NhW6V6o0]A New York Bagel[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/v/Nr8Dbbx0E5I]The Pig Roast[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/v/kAKtUfbGNQk]I Lost Myself To Good Cooking

Latina Women Respond

Recently Latina Role Model was featured on TikiTiki Blog: stories with cultura, color and sabor, in a post by Carrie Ferguson Weir called Smart Latina vs. Sexy Latina.  Carrie asked readers:

So, has your Smart Latina run up against the Sexy Latina? What do you see when you watch Maya’s video? What does it bring up for you? Why can’t we be both Smart and Sexy? Let’s talk about this, break it down, maybe shatter some stereotypes, and bust our own too.

Check out the PROFOUND difference in the nature of the comments left on this post (comments posted below) vs the ones left on YouTube.[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_1X1igrL4U]my contribution to post on Tiki Tiki:

I perform over-the-top representations of different identities. I group together these representations (characters) as a means of challenging limited perspectives of what women are like, and in this case, what Latina women are like.

This character is supposed to be an intellectual, accomplished, socially conscious woman- who will forever be seen as the “Sexy Latina.” The low quality video blog is meant to mock scenes in movies, where the hot high school teacher walks down the hall and all the boys undress her in their minds.

But I am not taking a negative or positive stance either. I want to question the role Latinas play in perpetuating this persona, and question if that is even a bad thing? Are we limiting ourselves by continuing to have this same conversation, even though the behavior persists, are we enforcing it by bring more attention to it?

I haven't always been so impartial. Out of all of the characters in Acciones Plásticas, The Latina Role Model is the one I identified with the most.  My original description of the way this character was perceived by others was much more reactionary and much angrier than it is now. (see below)

The Sexy Latina© from Acciones Plásticas free (stereotype) postcard, 2007

The Sexy Latina© is an educated woman who cares about important social and political issues. She wears suggestive provocative clothing to compensate for giving up her role as a homemaker. She uses her sexuality to obtain positions in the work world.

Latina Role Model from Acciones Plásticas プリクラ 2009

Over the last two years this character has really evolved. Here is the new description of The Latina Role Model, re-imagined as part of my Acciones Plásticas プリクラ collaboration with artist Rio Yañez:

The Latina Role Model is a diploma totin’ intellectual, sexy, social media goddess.

What do you think?  How does the earlier description of The Sexy Latina© differ from this new description of The Latina Role Model?  How do these two images relate to the Latina Role Model YouTube video?

• Sra. López says:

  January 21, 2010 at 8:52 am

  This is an excellent post and an excellent video. It really does make you think.I am really not qualified to speak from a “Latina perspective” on this topic because I am Anglo. (If you read my blog, you’ll know I’m Sra. López only because I married a Salvadoran.)That being the case, I can’t speak from personal experience on Latina stereotypes, but I would like to contribute an opinion or two on topics that are pretty closely related.For example, it really bothers me that the Latinas picked as reporters and journalists on Univision and Telemundo seem to be more for the purposes of eye candy than to report the news and add intelligent commentary — not that they aren’t intelligent women, but I think the sexism by the head honchos over there is pretty evident, not just on the news, but on other programming as well… And English language channels aren’t always much better. I think Western women in general – no matter what their race, fight very hard to overcome the sense that we are valued more as objects of sex/beauty, than for what’s inside.It’s very frustrating and I don’t envy the difficult job many women have of raising daughters in this world. (I have 2 sons) … With my own self esteem issues, I can’t imagine what a challenge it would be to raise a girl who is confident in herself and who doesn’t let Hollywood, fashion magazines, men, or even other females, get her down.I don’t know the solution to achieving true equality, but I think talking about it all is a good start.

• Angelica Perez says:

  January 21, 2010 at 10:58 am

  Very interesting…The role model I immediately identified with was the socially-conscious, smart role model, which made me realize how loaded that role is. Being an accomplished and educated Latina comes with so many expectations — the whole giving back to the community, serving your community, being a role model and mentor for others, etc. — that’s not something that an accomplished non-Latina woman has to worry about (or feel committed to).With regards to the sexy role model — I always say that there is no sexier woman than the one that exudes confidence in herself and who she is — the sexy clothes are just extras…Great conversation…

• Latina Role Model on Tiki Tiki « Maya Escobar says:

  January 21, 2010 at 11:50 am

  [...] Tiki Tiki: Stories with Cultura, Color and Sabor, thanks to post by Carrie Ferguson Weir entitled  Smart Latina vs Sexy Latina. Check out the post and be sure to leave your [...]

• Ana Lilian says:

  January 21, 2010 at 2:08 pm

  I guess I just never even thought of myself as the Sexy Latina…but a cute one yes! LOL! But once I´m on the dance floor, then the sexy comes out and it´s all good.But,seriously, I guess I just lack the perceived-Latina sassy-ness as I´ve never felt that bias towards me.I will definitely agree with dear Sra. López that the media, especially the Hispanic media, is completely promoting the hot Latina stereotype, and not much of the smart Latina one. Why do their “news” anchors feel they need to have their breast augmented to be taken seriously?

• Kikita says:

  January 21, 2010 at 2:11 pm

  I think it is inherent in our culture to be “hot” in every sense of the word because we are so passionate.I love what Maya was trying to accomplish and say with her video, but I found that she couldn’t hide or deny her Latin sensuality even when she was trying to play the part of an “intellectual, accomplished, socially conscious woman.”This DID make me stop and think, but what I realized is that I tend to shoot for a 3rd type. I go for “Classy Latina.” You know, the one that can wear the big hoops and sexy top with a pant suit. Someone like Ingrid Hoffman or Karla Martinez.

• C. Morales says:

  January 21, 2010 at 4:45 pm

  My impression is that Latina women play into the stereotype because Latino men often expect them to, and they are threatened by a smart woman. It is not just non-Latino men who expect a mujer caliente and nothing more.

• Liz says:

  January 21, 2010 at 5:09 pm

  How you project yourself, depends on you, no matter what. I, like Ana, never felt that I was looked at differently because I am Latina. I don’t see my self as a Sexy, Hot, Latina(I hope my husband does, though). Hell, I’m 33, been married for 12 years, and have 3 kids. I don’t get “chifles” anymore… ): LOL!This is directed towards the younger, single generation. How they present themselves as the future “Latina Generation”, depends on how they are raised. It’s up to us, as moms, to teach our daughters to go and be the BEST they can be. It’s up to me to raise my daughter to know what it right from wrong. Do guys really still think that girls are still destined to be “home/baby makers? Really??Forget Hollywood. Forget the Media. Heck, forget the evening news. If those ladies felt that they need to have their lady lumps hanging out in order to get the job, then I feel sorry for them. But, it is what it is.I will raise my daughter to know that education is the key to being classy and sexy! Not exposed Humps and Lady Lumps! Also, I will raise my boys to see women and they see themselves. Whether they marry a Latina or not.Ay, me pase de mas! he he!

• SUZ says:

  January 21, 2010 at 5:45 pm

  A smart and fun video commentary on the stereotypes of women in general…the educated intellectual, the hot babe, the innocent women. I like that Maya uses humor to deflect the extremes. Also that she creates a fine line between integrating the different role types. This is interesting because everyone is never just one thing…but we may choose to identify one way.

• Melissa Garcia Logan says:

  January 21, 2010 at 10:57 pm

  I think it’s part of a male dominated culture. Many women have this problem of having to manage male expectations in their professional lives, whether it is living with objectification or men projecting their need for nurturing from any woman they meet. I’ve had jobs where men thought it was okay to flirt with me and expected me to fulfill some messed up hot secretary fantasy, and I’ve had jobs where men I worked with expected me to be maternal and when I was driven, I was labeled aggressive. I’m not a dog, I’m not a hooker, and I’m definitely not your mother, guys.I think we have to teach men when they’re children that women can fill many roles and to expect them to be as capable and androgynous as any man performing the same duties. By the same token, I don’t know how I feel about using gender or sexuality as an asset to get ahead, my feeling is that anything you do that is manipulative in nature, is skirting unethical, if not flat out crossing the line.Having a sense of humor about stereotypes though, I don’t know if I see a problem as long as you don’t go too far and reinforce them. If it’s clear it’s a joke and part of the joke is how ridiculous stereotypical behavior really is…

• Carrie says:

  January 22, 2010 at 8:41 am

  I love the feedback, ladies. All great points and fabulous reflection.I am left wondering this, after reading Ana and Liz’s comments: Is stereotype/perception felt/seen at a greater level when we don’t live in predominately Latino communities?This comes to mind because your comments made me realize I never thought too much of my Latina side and my American side until I lived in cities where there weren’t a bunch of Cubans running around me everywhere. My otherness was apparent and pointed out. It was almost like, wow, I am different?Interesting!

• Marta says:

  January 22, 2010 at 12:58 pm

  I don’t fit into the Sexy or Brainy Latina mold at all. Probably because I look very Anglo – light skin, blue eyes. I blend pretty seamlessly into my So Cal suburban life.Except for the Latina “chispa.” That’s always the big giveaway right there. =D

• Liz says:

  January 22, 2010 at 5:24 pm

  Carrie,I emailed your post to my niece, whose studying at Penn State, this is what she had to say:Well, I agree with her lol. A lot of people especially here in Pennsylvania, see me as exotic because I’m Hispanic. They expect me to speak Spanish all of the time and a lot of them expect me to be kinda stupid and slutty. But when people get to know me, they find out that I’m extremely smart. Smarter than most people they encounter. And it sucks because I’m always having to prove myself to people and to teachers. But in the end, I’m the one that’s dropping jaws for my intellect and not for my attractiveness =)The end haha. Hope that helps.I am one PROUD Tia!!! (:

• Carrie says:

  January 23, 2010 at 1:54 pm

  Liz, aha! Thank you for sending the post to your niece and validating my theory. I love how your niece wrote to you and the “stupid and slutty” line made me bust out laughing — especially because she obviously is not.Gracias, proud Tia!(Maybe she needs to write for the Tiki Tiki? hmmmm?)

• Veronica says:

  January 23, 2010 at 6:19 pm

  Great video and excellent points.I think that this expectation for Latinas to appear sexy is one reason why I reject the hot mom movement. I wish there was just as much social pressure to be smart Latinas, smart moms, smart women as there is to be hot, sexy, etc.

behind the scenes acciones plásticas purikura

Here are some behind the scenes images from the many Acciones Plásticas プリクラ photo shoots.

The Latina Hipster

The Homegirl

The Homegirl putting on fake nails (lovin' the shabbos candlesticks and theory books in the background)

The Avodah Girl

The 612er

---------------------------------------------------------

Check out this inspiring write-up on Acciones Plásticas プリクラ on Truth and Healing Project.excerpt below:

goodness.   I’ve been thinking a lot about the intersections between new media and traditional forms of knowledge and how these intersections can be ways of supporting tradition, innovation, resistance and liberation.  As a media-maker, I’ve thought a lot about non-traditional forms of telling stories and the value of stories to allow us as individuals and communities  to grow and remain in movement.  I want to both  honor our traditions and create space for challenge in order to support growth.   This is particularly challenging when, as indigenos, we are usually FORCED  into the frozen stance (as my sister Whisper says)  of the “American Imaginary”.    Born out of a flat analysis, the “American Imaginary”  boxes us into specific archetypes and narratives that,  though perhaps grounded in truth,  metaphorically and at times literally  “freeze” us and immobilize us from engaging in healthy movement and LIFE.  As a guatemalan-born/ mixed -id’d/ mayan-adoptee I’ve  dreamed about new and innovative ways to create forums and craft form that embodies the intersections of say,  mayan id, transracial queer, working class, single teen mama id.   For example, as a queerasfuck femme I’ve LITERALLY dreamed of beginning a series of corsets created out of huipil’s with stories attached to each… though I have yet to begin work on that.  I am so excited by the thoughts of spaces for dialogue, beauty, challenge & examination of the COMPLEX identities embodies by the our contemporary indigena communities. .  Fierce and phenomenal chicana and radical latina artists  have had HUGE impacts on me but I’ve been hungry to see this come from other guatemelan/ mayan artists.  Today, I got a taste of a  contemporary and GUATEMALAN artist who is  actively engaged in a similar examination!  I came across this blog (and art work)  and it was as if an answer was given to me in the form of possibilities.  A sweet affirmation that this form of mayan/guatemalan  art CAN and DOES exist.

maya carrying maya

The wonderful Suzan Shutan has agreed to help me with my resume/cv/statements in exchange for web design and video work.  I couldn't think of a better collaboration.  Here is one of the many projects (and its many iterations) that I am attempting to catalog for said documents...

Tallit Rebozo, from the series Hiddur Mitzvah, Quilted, Embroidered, Woven, and Recycled Fabric, 2006

Comodification Series: Modeling Tallit Rebozo, Performance 2006

Comodification Series: Maya Carrying Maya, Photo Collage, 2006

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tr8B1u0jw0c]

Gringa Loves Guatemala, YouTube Video, 2007

Maya Carrying Maya, YouTube background, 2009

Maya Carrying Maya, Twitter background, 2009

Former Myspace Profile Picture, found internet photo (repeated here 3 times), 2006

rio prayed for la virgen de guadalupe and instead got...

If I haven't mentioned it before, I am quite the fan of awful horrible animated gifs.  As I continue to work with seeNoga and Rio Yañez on the Jewish characters from Acciones Plásticas プリクラ: The Jewess Blogging Queen, The Avodah Girl and The 612er; I thought I would share this terrible image created early on in our collaboration. There is also another version (which I can no longer find) where in last frame of the gif sequence, it rains diet cokes. :)

CHAP OPENING 12/6

Show opens 12/6.  If you haven't seen it, check out guest post I did on MyJewishLearing.com about my father's and my piece in the show.

acciones plásticas goes プリクラ chicano style

Acciones Plásticas プリクラ

Acciones Plásticas プリクラ is a collaboration between artists Maya Escobar and Rio Yañez.

The Latina Hipstera bad-ass Morrissey-lovin’, tuff-girl sexy chicaThe Latina Role Modela diploma totin’ intellectual, sexy, social media goddessThe Homegirla hybridized version of Escobar’s Midwestern Chach and Yañez’s West Coast Chola.In Acciones Plásticas Escobar created a multi-faceted “doll” by assuming the role of designer and distributor, and even posing as the actual doll itself.  Each doll was a satirical characterization of some of the many roles that have been projected upon her, and into which she has, at points, inevitably fallen. In conjunction with these images, she developed a short series of low-definition youtube video blogs through which she inhabits the lives of “real women” who have each been visibly defined by societal constructs.Recently, Yañez has been utilizing Japanese photobooths (known as Purikura or “print-club”) as an artist’s tool for creating portraits. These booths are much more common in Japan than their United States counterparts. As a catalyst for creative expression and social interaction they are used primarily by young urban Japanese girls. A standard feature in all Purikura booths allows the user to digitally decorate their portraits after they take them. The options are vast and include wild characters, excessive starbursts of light, pre-made phrases and the option to draw your own text directly on the image. Purikura gives the subjects near-divine powers of self-expression in crafting their own portraits.The two artists who met over the web, decided to bring together Escobar’s highly charged and evocative Acciones Plásticas characters with Yanez’s notorious Chicano graphic-art style and new found obsession with Purikura images, as a way of addressing the construction of Latina identities.Maya posed as The Latina Hipster: a bad-ass Morrissey-lovin’, tuff-girl sexy chica; The Latina Role Model: a diploma totin’ intellectual, sexy, social media goddess; and finally, The Homegirl: a hybridized version of Escobar’s Midwestern Chach (or Chachi Mama) and Yañez’s West Coast Chola. Maya sent digital images to Rio, who in turn drew portraits of her as each of these constructed identities. He approached each portrait with a Purikura sensibility and decorated them each as the characters represented might accessorize themselves. The final series of portraits is the result of negotiating multiple identities and influences. Guatemalan, Jewish, and Chicano sensibilities reflected back through a Japanese Purikura aesthetic. Acciones Plásticas プリクラ challenge and question the thin line between archetype and stereotype. The Purikura elements present the novel signifiers of each social construct represented in the series.This collaboration is the first of many to come as Maya and Rio explore the commonalities and differences of their cultural identities.For more information on Acciones Plásticas プリクラcheck out Rio's blog and stay tuned for guest post by seeNoga aka Carianne Noga on meeting the Chach Homegirl in real life.(video of the Chach featured below)[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xj3Q42YF40Y]

Talking About Orchard Street

photo by Julian Voloj

Maya and Gonzalo Escobar create Talking about Orchard Street, a multi-sensory interactive installation that explores the generational transmission of Jewish life through dialog.  The father-daughter duo traveled from Chicago to New Haven to conduct interviews with former members and friends of Orchard Street Shul and to record locals’ stories of growing up in New Haven during the 1920s and 30s. These stories of everyday life include tales of flirting on the front steps of the shul, eating herring and kichel, speaking Jewish, finding first jobs, going on first dates, learning bar mitzvah portions, and hearing (or having) loud conversations in the women’s section.  In Talking about Orchard Street, visitors are invited to sit in comfortable armchairs, sample herring and kichel, listen to excerpts from interviews and engage in dialog with each other.click here for more information about the Orchard Street Shul Artist Cultural Heritage Project

Orchard Street Artist Cultural Heritage Project

My father and I participated in the Orchard Street Artist Cultural Heritage Project.

During the months of December 2009 and January 2010, The John Slade Ely House Center for Contemporary Art in New Haven, Connecticut will come alive with memories, recollections, and recreations of an important community heritage site,  in an innovative group installation designed to both stimulate reflection on the legacies of past generations and engage the public in dreams for the future.The Orchard Street Shul Cultural Heritage Artists Project is an art exhibition, a history lesson,  a point of cultural exchange, and meeting place for dreamers, both nostalgic and visionary.  Artists, researchers, and scholars have joined together to celebrate an important historic New Haven landmark which was once central to the life of a large Jewish immigrant population in the Oak Street neighborhood.Urban changes in the last 50 years have all but erased evidence illustrating the importance of the Oak Street neighborhood in the lives of the newly arrived immigrants and migrants who populated much of the area now known as the "Oak Street Connector", Route 34.  Where some see open space, or a new hospital, or a school, or a parking lot, others with longer memories see shops bustling with activity, voices shouting in Yiddish and Italian, sprinkled with a variety of accents from elsewhere, including near and distant regions within the USA.Contributions to the installation offer a range of approaches.  Some artists researched the history of the Orchard Street Shul and its neighborhood, uncovering multiple stories of this community: stories of women working together to aid refugees, stories of hard-working fathers and mothers who dedicated themselves to making a better life for their children, and stories of teenagers who giggled and mingled on the steps of the Shul.   Others built on their own experiences, reaching into their hearts to create depictions of the Shul that are evocative of deeper connections with history and community.  Still others focused on the issues of urban renewal, making real the shifts in our urban landscape that are difficult to imagine as we visit the site today.Included in the Project are presentations by researchers from Yale University who developed innovative ways to document the building, including  virtual reconstructions exploring new digital methods, ground-breaking research by computer scientists that promises to change the ways that cultural heritage sites will be documented in the future.  Some contributing artists used this digital data in their creative work.The Orchard Street Shul Cultural Heritage Project is organized by Cynthia Beth Rubin, a New Haven based artist, in collaboration with participating artists and researchers: Nancy Austin, Meg Bloom, DonnaMaria Bruton, Jeanne Criscola, Roslyn Z. Croog, Linda Drazen, Paul Duda, Gonzalo Escobar,  Maya Escobar, Alan Falk, Greg Garvey, Shalom Gorewitz, Jaime Kriksciun, Leslie J. Klein, Beth Krensky, Seth Lamberton, Mary Lesser, Lisa Link, David Ottenstein, Bruce Oren, Robert Rattner, Cynthia Beth Rubin, Holly Rushmeier, Janet Shafner, Frank Shifreen, Suzan Shutan, Sharon Siskin, Christina Spiesel, Yona Verwer, Julian Voloj, Laurie Wohl, Chen Xu, and Howard el-Yasin.  The group includes artists from California, Florida, Utah, Missouri, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and New York, who traveled to New Haven to contribute to the project alongside artists from the region.A Project Book is being published in conjunction with the exhibition, including essays by Haisia Diner, the eminent scholar of Jewish immigration history,  Walter Cahn, renowned historian of art and and architecture, and Hana Iverson, known for her remarkable multi-media installation "View from the Balcony"  that was instrumental in helping attract attention to the renovation project of the Eldridge Street Shul.  The book will also feature photographs of the works in the exhibition and memories of the Orchard Street Shul, with commentary by Karen Schiff.  The innovative book design is by Criscola Design.The Public is Invited to the Opening Reception for the Participating Artists,  on Sunday, December 6, from 12:00 Noon to 5:00 pm.    To set the mood for the launch of “The Orchard Street Shul Artists Cultural Heritage Project”, the Joseph Slifka Center for Jewish Life at Yale for Jewish Life at Yale will host a Jazz jam session on December 5 at 7:30, celebrating the swing dance music of 1924 and beyond, when the cornerstone of this Synagogue was put in place in a ceremony attended by Mayor Fitzgerald and much of the entire New Haven community.The John Slade Ely House Center for Contemporary Art is open W-F, 11:00 am to 4:00 pm, and weekends 2:00 pm  to 5:00 pm.  Schools and other organizations who would like to arrange a group visit outside of regular hours may do so by sending an email to: [email protected].

Nuevos Compañeros: Rio Yañez

My newest partner in crime is the talented, witty, godzilla and pikapika lovin' Chicano artist and curator Rio Yañez. I first came across his Ghetto Frida two years ago, while working on the project Obsessed With Frida Kahlo. Immediately I felt some sort of cosmic connection-not to Ghetto Frida- but to her creator. And then to make matters worse better, I found out that he is the son of one my biggest heroes- Yolanda Lopez!There was really no option other than collaboration.  It was fate.Last month we finally initiated our long distance partnership through a tweet.  Since then we have been communicating through TwitPic, Facebook, YouTube, phone calls and texts,  and of course mutual shouts in interviews on the blogosphere (mine to Rio &  Rio's  to me.)Here are a few examples of Rio's recent work:

"I’ve been twittering for about a week now at http://twitter.com/rioyanez. I signed up as a way to contact Amber Rose after she started writing and posting about the portrait I created of her. I have to say, the most exciting aspect of twitter is the way people distribute images. The short urls for twitpics that often pop up on tweets evoke a sense of curiosity in me; more so than the many thumbnails that can be found on facebook. I think the lack of a thumbnail is more alluring and it forces you to chose to see the image or not, there’s no middle ground of a provided preview." (from his blog)

"Artist Curator Rachel-Anne Palacios flanked by Zitlalix and I. I created this portrait to thank Rachel for including me in the recent Frida exhibit she curated and to join the many artists who are on display on the walls of her apartment" (from flickr)

These images represent my first foray into my Raza Zombies series. They were inspired by the single best mainstream comic book of the 21st century: Marvel Zombies. Marvel Zombies re-imagines classic superheroes as flesh eating zombies. After reading it I felt compelled to do some zombie transformations on a few of my own personal heroes. More to come. (from flickr)[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AhRQrJ7ePg]

Video of Gomez Peña setting the record straight for Rio regarding his Facebook presence.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QycIf6uKRd0]

Rio's Ghetto Frida Mural in the Mission District

stay tuned for more...

Interview on Blogadera

I was interviewed on the Latino Blog Directory site Blogaderaclick here for full interview:

Here we are with Maya Escobar. An artist and educator whose art, personality and opinions come to life by way of her blog and social media extensions.  We are thrilled to have her on to talk about her background, blogging and sharing her blogging experience with the rest of the blogadera.When did you start blogging? What prompted you to pick it up.I started blogging in 2005, at the time I was completing my degree in art education at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.  I was interested in connecting with other artists, activists, students and educators to share ideas and resources.What do you blog about? Why?I blog about issues that relate to the artworks I am producing (basically concepts I am thinking about). Topics include: the construction of identity, hybridity, sexuality, education, placelessness, immigration, activism, religion, and mental health.Can you give us a little bit of background on Maya Escobar?Well… it just so happens that I just posted a new “about me” to my website:I am a performance artist, Internet curator, and editor. I use the web as a platform for engaging in critical community dialogues that concern processes by which identities are socially and culturally constructed. I perform multiple identities and sample widely from online representations and existing cultural discourses. My identifications as a Latina-Jewish artist, dyslexic blogger, activist and educator are indexed by the blogs I keep, the visual and textual links I post, the books, articles, and blog posts I cite, the public comments I leave, and the groups I join.By examining and re-imagining my personal experiences, I attempt to provide others with a framework for questioning societal limitations based on gendered and racialized cultural generalizations.(if you found that about me too dull there is a post on my blog where I describe myself as an elephant)Does your blog reflect your culture? Is this intentional or just a natural byproduct?I hope that my blog reflects a culture of critical inquiry, communal dialogue, and collaboration. (this would be intentional)What is the state of the Latino Blogosphere? Do you see it growing? Any Examples?I see more and more Latina and Latino bloggers every day.  But what I find most exciting is when those bloggers are young people and they are blogging with a positive message.  A wonderful example that I have found is MyLatinitas.com the social networking platform hosted by Latinitas Magazine. Here young Latinas are actively sharing their thoughts on politics, culture, education, and family.You work alot with videos…do you consider yourself a vlogger? If so, can you define that for us!hmm… I am not really sure if I consider myself to be a vlogger.  When I think of a vlogger, I think of a person who makes videos that contain similar content to content that would be included in a blog post (such as current events, politics, or personal observations.) Maybe, I am a part time vloggerAny advice for Latinos who want to start blogging?I think it is important to get a sense of why it is that you want to blog, what will your blog say about you, and how you envision your blog interacting with your personal and professional life.Write about issues that you are passionate about, in a way that other people can relate to.  Use the Internet for all it can do- link between your own posts and link to posts written by others.  Read other people’s blogs and comment!  If you want people to be interested in the things you are writing about know what they are writing about!And most importantly when you can, blog in Spanish!What blogs do you follow or subscribe to? Favorites?I just started reading VivirLatino which led me to the awesome blog of La Mamita Mala. I have been following Latina Lista for sometime, Rio Yañez and his buddy Maya Chinchilla, Sergio Antonio, Jorge Linares…… the list just keeps on growing…What are you favorite social media sites and how do you use these tools in your day-to-day?At this point twitter, youtube, flickr and wordpress are the sites that I most commonly use. My activity on all of theses sites crosses over.  For example, I might write a post on my blog, that will include a youtube video and images I posted onto flickr.  Then I send a tweet that includes either a segment of my blog post, an image from the post, or some of the tag words describing the post.Do you divide social media by purpose, friends, professional v. personal, etc.?Not really, for the most part my personal life is my professional life.What’s next for Maya? What do we have to look forward to from you?I am working with my father on developing my first performance piece entirely in Spanish. We are using a recording of an interview my mother conducted with my abuelita in 1985, as source material for the monologue I will be performing recounting her experiences, but as myself- two generations removed……I am also planning a piece with fellow artist and blogger Rio Yañez surrounding the Wise Latina phenomenon.  I don’’t want to give too many details away, but I can promise there is going to be a Top 10 list![more]check out other Blogadera interviews with Carrie Fergerson and Jo Ann Hernandez

ongoing intertextual exchange

The other day I posted a link on facebook to an article by Kevin Kelly on vizual literacy. Both Eric Repice and Eliyahu Enriquez responded to this post, and Eliyahu wrote a post about this exchange on his blog....The following is a repost of Eliyahu's post Vizual LiteracyRT/Hat Tip @mayaescobar Tools for VizualityExcerpt from Fb Thread Transcript:

In archiving poems in blog format, I find embedding videos with a distinct narrative to the word-piece heightens the sensory experience: simultaneous stimuli, rather than a replacement paradigm with regards to medium. The experimental nature of combining/utilizing moving images with poetry, such as those of Filipino Author, Nick Carbó, hints at what I'm trying to get at, though the idea I'm reaching for may be more a novelty for Literary marketing strategies/accessibility on the web... With an accompanying video in whatever length, the reader is more likely to stay with the poem, rather than a wham-bam!-thank you, sir means of creative dissection. Whereas, to capture the essence of canonization - the written word to a cinematic language, while maintaining their distinction - that's something I'm currently playing with...What Would Judas Do?

"I visited a sage, Rav Yosef Shalom Eliashuv, who lives in one of the most secluded ultra-Orthodox communities in Jerusalem. He was in poor health but still taking visitors... Speaking in Hebrew, I told him what, at the time, I felt was the truth. 'Master, I am attracted to both men and women. What shall I do?' He responded, 'My dear one, my friend, you have twice the power of love. Use it carefully' - Rabbi Steven Greenberg."

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lu2tkyEWiZc]

I am attracted to

He loved me.He loved me not.

I love bringing pleasure too

She loves mi.She loves mi knot.

The Art of Couch-Hopping

Lark descending.Lost Ark.

As Queer as A Clockwork Orange

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Uc30u1r81k]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNcyoT1xLTU]

Sources:

Maya Escobar's YouTube ChannelNick Carbó's YouTube ChannelEliyahu Enriquez's YouTube Channel

Negotiating Diaspora Identities Through New Media

Join PhD Anthropology Candidate Eric Repice and MFA Candidate Maya Escobar in a brown bag lunch discussion concerning transnational, transcultural, and hybrid negotiations of identity through new media.How do these discussions vary between our fields?Eric Repicefor more information on Eric Repice visit http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~esrepice/homefor more information on Maya Escobar visit http://mayaescobar.com[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3li_mT--f-A][youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-GDmDcSH4g][youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whLYM9o946w][youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vz2fhmRzCOA][youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14bv0-dzMIc][youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNAxEUEE43Y]

Hope in the STL POST

Article from the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH

'Hope' springs anew for Washington University grad students

November 19, 2008 -- Carianne Noga, a graduate student of art at Washington University, ties tags of hope onto a sculpture outside the University City Post-Office. Noga and fellow student Maya Escobar started soliciting people's hopes to place on the sculpture. (Christian Gooden/P-D)By Margaret GillermanST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH11/29/2008UNIVERSITY CITY — Georgia O'Keeffe found inspiration in the light and shapes of New Mexico. Mary Cassatt found hers in mothers and children. Maya Escobar and Carianne Noga, two graduate students at Washington University's Sam Fox School of Art and Design, found inspiration for their latest project from the long lines on Election Day at a Ben and Jerry's ice cream shop in the Loop.There, on the sidewalk outside the shop, which was giving away scoops of ice cream to voters, the two women felt excitement and hope among voters. They said they found that same feeling across the street in the long line of voters waiting to vote at the Loop polling place."We wanted to continue that moment and not let it peak out," Noga said.Before the polls closed, they had begun to create their "I hope…" project.They first staked out a site: outside the University City Post Office at 561 Kingsland Avenue.They then provided people with bright red tags and paint markers for them to write down their hopes for a better future.The tags then are affixed to a permanent lattice wood sculpture already on site outside the Post Office."As difficult as it can be sometimes to voice our wishes and dreams, it can be strengthening," the artists say in explaining their mission. "We can be reminded of the rest of the world outside our own immediate concerns. In this period of great change and near infinite possibilities, it is time for us to voice our hopes."While the project is for all people, Escobar said it holds special meaning for young people."This is our moment to make a difference for our communities," Escobar said. "We need to be aware — of our national situation, of the economy."Many of the hopes expressed — most recorded anonymously — so far are noble and universal: "I hope for world peace" and "My hope is that hate is no longer."Some of the hopes are personal. "I hope to not fear death," wrote one.Others have a distinctly political bent: "I hope we get out of Iraq and don't go to war with Iran." And some are just fun, like the person hoping for "chocolate cake for dessert ..."A University City police officer named Hope — Reginald Hope — shared with them his own hope: for safety for police officers. A fellow officer was killed while on duty near the Loop last month.Washington University Chancellor Mark Wrighton gave his hope and "wishes for better health and greater prosperity for all."The artists also are encouraging people to submit their hopes online at togetherwehope.com.The existing sculpture outside the post office was designed in 2005 by an undergraduate architectural design studio taught by Carl Safe in the Washington University School of Architecture. University City resident Ethel Sherman had asked Safe to help create a sculpture in memory of her husband William Sherman, a Washington University biochemist who died about five years ago."It's strong like Bill and peaceful and quiet," she said. Sherman said she's thrilled about adding "I hope..." to it."This is an exciting time of change and hope," said Sherman, a retired psychologist and teacher who worked for 10 years at the Loop's Craft Alliance.The artists, both 24, come from family traditions of public service and political idealism."I grew up under the table of political meetings," says Escobar, remembering her childhood in Chicago. "My friends and I formed our first political organization when we were 11 — Students Against Child Oppression — on behalf of children in sweatshops in Mexico."Her mother is a school nurse, and her father, an educator, hosts a radio show in Chicago called "Si, Se Puede," which means "Yes, We Can." The program has been around since 1996.Noga grew up in the Washington, D.C., area and in Georgia. Her father is a psychiatrist at a state hospital, and her mother is a library director.Both artists are second-year graduate students in the two-year master's of fine arts program.The project will remain up through January. Later, the tags can be relocated to other sites and the online site will remain.University City has embraced the "I hope ..." project, according to city manager Julie Feier."It's an inspiring project," she said.

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