None of the artwork in this gallery is for sale

Curatorial Rationale

While growing up, I was always someone who questioned who I was. It was one of the most difficult things to answer when someone would ask me who I am or how would someone else describe me. I believe some of the reason for this is because I was the only daughter out of four children. Through my artwork, I explore themes of identity and feminism.

I have grown in a household where it was mostly men. In my artwork, I use objects that are personally related to me and my beliefs. In Insecurities, I photographed a tomato because I get compared to a tomato a lot when I get embarrassed. Due to my fair skin, it is really noticeable when I turn red. I used foundation to pour onto the tomato to show how I hid my redness. This relates to my feminine side because makeup is something that is always getting promoted for women to use to hide their flaws. My goal for the audience in this artwork is to show how them to understand why I chose to wear makeup and for them to understand how I would crush that insecurity if I could In Hidden Appearances, I used a bandana to cover up my face because at work I always get told that I look Polish, when I am Mexican. By covering up my face people will focus instead on the way that I am dressed, which would allow them to guess my race and culture.

As I was growing up, I was always being taught how to do house chores. I was always told that the man had to provide for the house, while the women had to do house chores like cooking and cleaning. Being the only daughter, I had to be the one that they had prepared for being a housewife and continue with the ordinary tradition. Along with that, my father left my mother not that long ago and he believes that we depend on him for money. That is when I got a job and started contributing to the house. My artworks explore the idea of finding oneself because it shows that there are many pathways to success.

Through my artworks, I used photography because I wanted to try and capture my perspective on my reality being the only daughter in a mexican family. In Insecurities, I use a sense of censorship with the tomato by having the foundation dripping over the tomato. In Hidden Appearances, I cover up the face hiding my own femininity and culture. My intention was to show what culture I am without letting others guess or define me. Through Hidden Appearances, I show how I do not like when others tell me what I am or what I look like. My goal for the audience here is for them to see what I am labeling myself as. A bandana is something that I would see a lot of my family wear growing up, so I saw it as part of my culture. I want to be able to have control over who I am rather than have others control me. In Locked, I was inspired by the Aztec calendar pattern. Through the use of keys, I show how hard it is for me to open up to someone. I am someone who never really had anyone to relate to around my age or gender, so I learned to just keep things to myself.

My artwork connects with the way that I have hung it up because with the Locked being in the center shows how I am finally going to open up to people and show them how I really feel about everything. On the left hand side, I have Insecurities going in order from top to bottom because it shows the process of time and the destruction that makeup can cause on oneself. On the side I have Hidden Appearances to show that I will not let others define who I am. Through the arrangement of my artwork, it is to show the audience how my silence really held back a lot of my thoughts and how I overcame them.

None of the artwork in this gallery is for sale

Contact the artist at ashleymlopez2192@gmail.com