Dear TRENDS Diary -
If you had told my teenage self I would still be living in my hometown of Longmont at age 31, I never would have believed it. But reflecting on the love-hate relationship of the place we call home, and realizing what elements really make somewhere home, has shaped me and my artwork. I also love that Longmont, who’s population is about 25% Chicanx/Latinx, communally celebrates my culture and history.
As a 2021 Boulder Creative Collective artist resident, I am working on a series of paintings and three-dimensional work that is influenced by the Rasquache art movement. Rasquache, which was originally a derogatory term describing the taste of the Mexican lower class, became a way for artists to take pride in where they came from and embrace color, clutter, and using kitsch or “cheap” items for fine art material.
