Comparison of Riojas' and Flores' Art
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2019-12-15T20:55:01-08:00
Both Riojas and Flores create forward, feminist Latinx art that engages emotion along with intellect.
Riojas, in using more general symbols to represent the Latinx experience, allows for broader, relatable interpretations to be drawn. Oppositely, Flores invokes very specific imagery and uses text to provide art that is relatively more straightforward. Each artist, in her own way, emphasizes the value of Latinx womanhood as well as their balance between being characteristically feminine and fierce, two often contradictory ideas. As much obvious Latinx representation as there is in this art, from addressing the community’s diversity to its association with immigration, there are several hidden messages that build to support such representation. Take for example, Riojas’ formation of a heart that encapsulates the Latinx community members in her second piece or Flores’ application of hair as roots in her first piece. Respectively, these artists introduce the concept that interconnectedness is an essential component of the Latinx experience, even if it has negative effects. The Latinx identity of each artist plays a clear role in their virtual and academic lives, as Flores has been awarded a Chicana scholarship and Riojas has given a TEDxTalk about activism (TEDx Talks). Nonetheless, the degree to which their Latinx experience influenced their art calls for a visit to the questions that I originally posed. I believe that, while Riojas’ and Flores’ Latinx identities contribute to their art, it is not essential to create Latinx art.
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