In the Spirit of a New People by Randy J. Ontiveros

Author:Randy J. Ontiveros [Ontiveros, Randy J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Social Science, General, Anthropology, Cultural, Cultural & Social, Discrimination
ISBN: 9780814738771
Google: uPoTCgAAQBAJ
Publisher: NYU Press
Published: 2014-01-15T03:21:08+00:00

FIGURE 2.5. Black Madonna (1991–92) by Santa Barraza. Courtesy of the artist.

A different kind of naturalism operates in Barraza’s work. Her art shows a rich awareness of what makes humans unique: the sophisticated use of symbols and signs; the capacity for self-reflection through art and reason; and a deliberative approach to organizing social life, among other things. For Barraza, though, these aspects of human existence—like humans themselves—do not exist apart from nature. She anchors her belief in indigenous philosophy, saying that “respect for the earth and maintaining a balance between the physical and the spiritual worlds were the bases of the religious and philosophical world views of our indigenous ancestors.”118 Barraza’s strategic use of dimension affirms this balance. Her canvases draw on the principles of European high art to create a feeling of dynamism, but the shallow field of vision emphasizes a proximate relationship between the human subject and her surroundings. The result is what artist and commentator Amalia Mesa-Bains calls “an instructive gaze” found in the work of many Chicana artists.119 Barraza’s images invite viewers to pause from the hurried pace of life in late capitalism, to reflect on what they value most, and to consider how those values connect them to the human and nonhuman worlds they inhabit. In other words, they prompt viewers to imagine an alternative modernity erected on human cooperation with nature, rather than exploitation.

The painting Nepantla (1995) is an ideal place to end a discussion of Barraza’s successful career. Arguably her masterpiece, the image blends Barraza’s commitment to social justice, to environmental awareness, and to cultural engagement. An indigenous woman occupies the foreground of the image, her back to the viewer but her face turned to her right at a three-quarter profile. The deep brown of her neck and cheek set off the intense blues, yellows, reds, and greens of her clothing, which bears the image of the Virgen de Guadalupe superimposed on the silhouette of the United Farm Worker eagle. Native plants of the Americas grow around her: two magueys, one at her feet and one in front of her; a prickly pear cactus to her left; and to her right, a lily with two white flowers and their yellow stamens. Neatly plowed fields move horizontally across the middle ground of the image, and tall mountains rise in the background beneath pillowy white clouds and a deep blue sky. The separate elements of the canvas are united through a dramatic foreshortening, so that “humanity, and nature are merged into one unit.”120

Barraza interprets Nepantla as a visual meditation on “border crossing and migration.” The context for the painting is important. She produced it in 1995 while in Saratoga, California, for the “Entre Americas” workshop. At the time, the “Golden State” was aflame with anti-immigrant and anti-Latino/a sentiment. A year prior, Republican governor Pete Wilson won a hard reelection fight against Democratic candidate Kathleen Brown by running on a racially charged platform that called for more militarized borders and a draconian criminal justice system. Voters

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