Artist Statement for the 'Fronterizmos' Exhibtion at La Casa Cultural, Yale University, 2001.

I was born on the south end of the U.S.-Mexico border, in the early hours of November 2nd, 1975. It was “El dia de los muertos”, the “Day of the Dead”. I can’t think of anything more fitting than coming into the world on one of the greatest Mexican holidays. And yet, my family never really did celebrate this tradition. It’s simply not common on the border. This is the way of life between Juarez, Chihuahua and El Paso, Texas. Juarenses celebrate Thanskgiving, El Pasoans celebrate Cinco de Mayo. Neither of us truly knowing why, just trying to embrace each other’s culture.

I have to admit I’m not a “true” Mexican. I can’t call myself a Chicano, and the terms Hispanic or Latino have never applied to me. I’m somewhere in between all these distinctions. Torn between Halloween and El Dia de los Muertos; between Christmas and Dia de los Reyes. I’m a border Mexican.

This duality shows in my work. People have classified it as very “european”, as “border-specific”, as “americanized”, as “too mexican” and as “not mexican enough”. I am this way because that’s the kind of the place I grew up in. A place of two cultures, two nations, two languages, two ways of looking at the world.

I often struggle with the question of titling my work in English or Spanish, of showing the Mexican or the American point of view. Often times my work becomes bilingual, and with a border point of view; and I always wonder if I’ve alienated half of the people with my particular decision.

Even though the artistic tradition of my country is firmly planted on the work of the muralists, I have never felt a pull in that direction. I have always felt saddened by imitators of Rivera, Tamayo, Kahlo and the like. I feel that a lot of young Mexican artists think they have to emulate these sensitivities in order to be taken seriously in the art world. I’m hoping to prove that wrong. I am working towards a revolution in Mexican image making, a jumpstart that will push us to the next step. A swift cut of the umbilical cord tying us to the masters of the 20th century; All this without loosing touch of the past and where we’re coming from.

Fortunately, I am not alone in this struggle. I have already seen the seeds of this new movement, and I feel that I’m part of it. It is a great time to be a border Mexican. It is a great time to be a border artist.

April, 2001

Artist Statements:   Splitting Aguas  /   'SEEd' Series  /   Fronterizmos