Writing Portfolio
The Interconnectedness of Mónica Mayer, the Mexican Feminist Art Movement, and Radical Women
My research paper and presentation are inspired by the 2017 Pacific Standard Time exhibition Radical Women: Latin American Art 1960-1985. The presentation is centered around Radical Women featured artist Mónica Mayer (b.1954), in congruence with a semiotic investigation of her work, El Tendedero, to further explore the foundation of the Mexican feminist art movement. Through a discussion of Mayer and the Mexican feminist art movement, I establish how Radical Women mirrors the movement's shared themes and focus on unity among female artists.
The presentation further explores Mayer’s artist efforts to expand feminist art in Mexico, such as through her work with Polvo de Gallina Negra (PdGN), Mexico’s first self-proclaimed art collective, and with Tlacuilas y Retrateras.
Further, I explore Mayer’s work in Los Angeles from 1978 to 1980. This is another crucial aspect I look to, as Radical Women was part of the Pacific Standard Time LA/LA theme, making it essential for me to examine her work in both Latin America and Los Angeles, as LA/LA suggests.
Faith Ringgold: The Unmentioned Pop Artist
My research paper is based on Faith Ringgold’s American People Series #20: Die, a 72x144 inch two-paneled oil painting currently exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art. This piece, referred to as Die, is part of Ringgold’s American People series, which comprises 20 artworks produced from 1963 to 1967.
When analyzing Ringgold’s work alongside Pop artists, it is clear that the Pop Art movement should include her work. Ringgold’s art uses images from mass media, two-dimensional imagery, and mediums deemed as “low” art, all aspects of the Pop Art movement. Despite Ringgold’s art exhibiting these characteristics of Pop, her work is discussed solely in terms of race. This association of Ringgold’s work with race is due to the constant dismissal of BIPOC artists in terms of art movements. Introducing Ringgold to the roster of Pop artists creates space for an untold narrative in Pop Art, a Black woman’s narrative.
An Allegory of the Old and New Testaments
My visual analysis is based on Hans Holbein the Younger's An Allegory of the Old and New Testaments. I was tasked with writing a 4-6 page paper for my Foundation of Western Art class. For my visual analysis, I focused on how Holbein utilizes lines created by landscape elements, differentiating colors, and Latin words to narrate the Old and New Testaments’ biblical stories.