Occidental College Silkscreen workshop

Today, in honor of the famous author Gloria Anzaldua, I represented Mujeres de Maiz and did a silkscreen workshop for La Raza Coalition at Occidental College. This one hour workshop: "Nepantla Prints: Visions From l@s otr@s," was inspired by Dewey Tafoya from Self Help Graphics & Art. Students created a poster using stencil making techniques and the ancient art of silkscreen to express a moment within their process of decolonization and what Gloria Anzaldua describes as “Nepantla.”  

“Nepantla is the Nahuatl word for an "in-between state," that uncertain terrain one crosses when moving from one place to another, when traveling from the present identity into a new identity…. For women and people of color, nepantla is a constant state; dislocation is the norm." -Gloria Anzaldua.  In this workshop we explored these Anzalduan themes and created from our conocimientos. When I teach, I try to teach from the heart, guided by mindfulness. I am always amazed, inspired and challenged by what students discover about themselves in the art making process.

Student Testimonies:

"Thank you so much for coming here and being so generous with your time"

"We would love to have you come and do this again"

"Art is so healing"

"your work is so amazing"

"This feels so awesome"

"I'm scared"

"How do I make my design/stencil better?"

"This is so amazing"

"Thinking on my own, without so much structure, and coming up with my own ideas, is so challenging"

"I have never seen this process... silkscreen before"

"I love doing this"

"can i do this for a living?"

 All I could say was, "Well, maybe. Some artists do... there could be opportunities everywhere, especially when you work to create them."