2022-2023 Duke Visual Arts Capstone: Beacon
Cloth, thread, toilet paper, joint compound, flour, book board, acrylics, paper, glue
Everyday objects can be containers of culture, reflection, and tension. I construct artist books that resemble everyday objects from my youth whose absence that has prodded reflection during college. My work exists in the hyphen between my identity of being Honduran-American and reflects my ongoing questions about cultural belonging and family history.
Beacon resembles a common childhood memory: a stack of fresh tortillas covered in
embroidered cloth. Four tortillas are mini books that delve into my personal reflections of
moving through Latine and white spaces as a second-generation immigrant. Unique book
structures reflect the confusion and tension of feeling neither American or Latine enough
growing up. Using paper mache and embroidery, I evoke the spirit the women in my family and their customs of tortilla making and domestic embroidery. I use poetic text that leans into the writing of zines and their history of being counternarratives to mainstream media in Central America and marginalized groups in the U.S. Drawing on the history of artist’s books, my work creates an individualized, interactive experience. I hope for the audience to have an intimate experience of flipping through my thoughts and invite other second-generation immigrants to reflect on the tensions between our identities. My work strives to be an intimate space to question cultural belonging, identity, and living in hyphens with me.
Planning
Capstone Exhibition
