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| Nos poniamos a limpiar, ordeñar, lavar, todo por esa caminadita en la tarde. Rancho Santa Marta, Jalisco, 2008. |
Para tener raiz Mexicana significa que mi raiz es mi identitad. Pero como podemos confirmar eso si la raiz nos clasifica como extranjeros? Cuando tenemos suficiente conocimiento de una cultura para llamarla nuestra?
At first, I didn't know what to expect for this class, and how structured it would be, but I loved the structure of little structure, where I not just learned, but I felt the culture, my culture, in a way I have never before. I was fascinated by the beauty that lies in the song, the pieces, the people.
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| Musico en Chapala, Jalisco. 2012 |
Mexican music, at least prior to what is mostly played nowadays, is golden, and underrated. Because of my lack of knowledge of this music (my parents listened to 80s pop and 70s disco), it was a difficult process to identify myself with the music in the class for a while, and all I could connect to was the religion behind it, or the mentality of it through the motifs of death, distance, heartbreak....
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| Catedral en Guadalajara |
I was aware of my farm family, but being the wannabe black sheep everywhere I go, it was deeply engrained that I was a city girl. However, when I do visit el ranchito de mis abuelitos en Mexico, I very much love it and do everything possible that I cannot do in a city: milk cows, cut through the fields, make stone houses with my little cousins, start a fire inside the patio of my abuelita's brick house.... afternoon walks in the flat, dry land...
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| Por si no creian que ordeño con mi abuelito! Rancho Santa Marta, 2012 |
This class made me appreciate the translation of personal experience, readings (Octavio Paz is a topic of conversation with my mom now, ask her how much she agrees as a Mexican), and music into a visual piece. I like to explore, be adventurous with my mediums...
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| La mayoria de mis obras! |
Overall, I feel that along with the class, who I now consider a family, as we all opened up through song, through our pieces, through the pachangas... I realized this class was not just of identity, but taking in the moment, the song, and lifting our voice. I remember in the beginning of the semester I liked singing, but I was too scared to lift my voice, but as we all got comfortable with each other and the songs, I raised my voice. All voices, whether more "Mexican" than others, had a right to be in the space. We all had our stories, and the songs we sang spoke to us, as they will always.
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| Mirar esta obra de Orozco era fenomenal. (Guadalajara 2012) |
I am very grateful for this class, because truly, it felt not just like a club, but a space to reflect and be introspective, no matter our backgrounds, and it was beautiful. Thank you Tony!! <3
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