My friend Hugo and I were talking about school the other day when he mentioned that there was an art exhibition on display at East Los Angeles College in the Vincent Price Art Museum. Hugo explained a little bit about the exhibit enough to catch my interest. The next following days I prepared to go to the exhibit. I got online to look up the information. The information says the exhibit will be available to see September 16, 20178 to December 2, 2017, Free Admission. I started to read the information about the exhibit it’s a black and white photo of a woman nude lying down on dirt. My heart starts to race and I’m intrigued. What is this? I immediately start to read the synopsis.
Laura Aguilar: Show and Tell is the first comprehensive retrospective of photographer Laura Aguilar, assembles more than one hundred thirty works produced over three decades. Through photographs and videos that are frequently political as well as a personal and which traverse performative, feminist, and queer art genres, Aguilar offers candid portrayals of herself, her friend and family, and LGBT and Latinx communities.
Aguilar’s now ionic triptych, Three Eagles Flying (1990), set the stage for her future work by using her nude body as an overt and courageous rebellion against the colonization of Latinx identities – racial, gendered, cultural and sexual. Her practice intuitively evolved over time as she struggled to negotiate and navigate her ethnicity and sexuality, her challenges with depression and auditory dyslexia, and the acceptance of her large body. This exhibition tells the story of the artist who for most of her life struggled to communicate with words yet ironically emerged as a powerful voice for numerous and diverse marginalized groups (vincentpriceartmuseum.org).
The synopsis goes more into detail that had my head in a wow feeling. I had to see the exhibit before it was going to end and move on.
It’s Wednesday morning and I am looking for a friend or family member to go with me on this adventure. I found a museum junkie to go with me. My friend Salem goes with me. I go pick her up and we head out to East Los Angeles.
We get there and I’m listening to the directions and we get lost. I start laughing in my head but I’m really irritated because I missed the parking lot. I see a guy and girl walking. I roll up to them in my car and ask them where the museum is. They give me direction; we are on the wrong side of the school.
We walk into the museum and we are greeted by some nice students working the front desk. She asks us if we are students we said no. I tell her we are there to see the Laura Aguilar exhibit. The front desk girl starts to give us information. The exhibit is on two floors and what of what is on each floor. I tell Salem wow two floors it must be good. All excited we are directed to the elevator. In we go and up to the third floor.
We get off and I start to read the label describing in the wall, describing all the pictures on the wall. They were so interesting. We walked into one of the rooms and saw a bunch of nude photography. My eyes opened up and I was in awe. I wanted to know what each story that the photo has. The label says: Landscapes
Aguilar’s photographs of the body in nature are her most documented series of work and have received the most critical attention.
Aguilar’s nude photography is powerful and enlightening. Some of the nudes were so powerful it brought tears to my eyes. There was a wall with some nude photos and I couldn’t help but to feel some kind of connections. It was of Laura’s nude lying next to what looks like a hole with water which is mirroring her. It’s amazing. It’s all in each person’s perspective. I love it, it hit something in me.
Laura also adds some other art pieces. I see photos of old toys that she owed. Really interesting especially seeing an old-school wonder woman. There are portrait posters of Laura some friends. It’s a poster with the person blown up and at the bottom of the photo is a saying. Two read
“My father told me if asked say your “Mexican-American.” My mother told me whatever you do in life, All people will see is the color of your skin. I spent 20 years feeling Ashamed, but that was taken.
There was a time when I felt ashamed of the color of my skin. There was a time when I discovered art, my culture and the history of others who struggled. The knowing led me to find myself.
Wow, I was in utter shock and amazed at the same time. I thought I was the only person that grew up feeling ashamed of my color and confusing parents.
This art exhibit seems to be a tell-all about her life and struggles. She talks about her struggle with severe depression and suicide.
The whole art exhibit is a must see. If you have time make the visit. I was looking at the time and date for the exhibit. The date has been moved to February 10, 2018.
If you are interested, look up vincentpriceartmuseum.org or call (323) 265-8841
