Warrior Women is a body of photographic, sculptural altars honoring and exploring the evolution of feminine identity and the impact of civilization. ​The contemporary use of amatl (ancient mesoamerican bark paper) with the ancient art of papel picado, and silkscreen printmaking fused with kitchen table oilcloths in my work, began as an aesthetic choice personifying the ancient power of the domestic then progressed as what Cherríe Moraga and Celia H. Rodríguez would call a ‘force for re-membering.’ Some of these altars occasionally hang from wooden hangers since what we wear is often used to define us. How we choose to define ourselves becomes an act of resistance. 

The use of ancient amatl paper juxtaposed with the modern oilcloth reminds us that we as women are vulnerable yet powerful against the destructive, transformative forces of patriarchy. The negative spaces in the work represent history that is forgotten and the careful precision of institutional violence and trauma that ‘cuts’ into our souls, our relationships and way of life. When dramatically lit, the shadows produced are like hidden flaws and terrible truths, revolving and adapting, reflecting their surroundings; an allegory of the darkness of humanity that lies within and around us. What we are left with is the duality, the memory of what it means to be human.

These altars behave like kinetic mobiles, freely moving like enduring memories, carrying an emotional stillness, filled with mourning and humble celebration via the question: how do we want to be remembered?

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Cultural history and memory as process inspire my work and is designed to encourage dialog about the transformation that occurs when connecting with the wisdom of ancient instinct. I follow my intuition, or what Gloria Anzaldúa refers to as ‘La Facultad.’ These objects, or what Laura Pérez would call altarities, commemorate and honor the history of our ancestors.

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I am influenced by many Xicana feminist authors like Cherríe Moraga, Amalia Mesa-Bains and artists like Margaret Sosa, Olga Ponce Furginson, Yreina D. Cervántez, Celia H. Rodríguez, Kara Walker and Lee Bontecou. My process is cerebral, instinctual and intentional. It involves the exploration, discovery and release of feminine trauma inspired by personal history, ancient aboriginal symbols, ceremonies and practices. In the adoption and modification of these images, my culture is reinterpreted and passed on with the hope to offer something meaningful for future generations.