ChicaChic: The New Wave of Chicana Art

ChicaChic, an art exhibit showcasing five leading Chicana visual artists is open through March 18th 2011 at California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS). ChicaChic includes images that honor the concepts, themes, and iconography of the Chicano civil rights movement of the 1960s and 1970s but reflect a world that is drastically changed," says Deirdre Visser, arts curator at CIIS. "These women were raised in a different era, and ask different questions" added Visser. The works in the show include a large canvas by Ana Teresa Fernandez depicting a woman "washing" the beach at the U.S.-Mexican border with her hair; it's a striking image that demands both that we engage with the current debates over immigration, and the politics of women and labor.

In addition to Fernandez, ChicaChic features the work of Angelica Muro, Mitsy Ávila Ovalles, Favianna Rodriguez, and Shizu Saldamando. The work of these five artists varies greatly, but they all are responding visually to the shifting needs of their communities in novel ways. The exhibit is guest-curated by Raquel de Anda, formerly of Galería de la Raza. "ChicaChic is about stepping beyond the boundaries of identity, challenging stereotypes about what it means to be Chicana," says de Anda. "It's about the fluidity of identity and the need for new kinds of images in a fast-paced, media-saturated society."

The exhibit is the culmination of years of planning. As Dorotea Reyna, CIIS Director of Development describes it, "ChicaChic is also a way to represent who we are at CIIS. With an ethnically diverse student body, CIIS feels that ChicaChic is an ideal exhibition to highlight our diversity, expand our arts programming, and further project our voice into Bay Area Latino communities."

The BART campaign

As part of ChicaChic, each of the five artists is creating an original poster for a public art campaign, funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. The public will see the posters starting in January 2011 at BART stations around the Bay Area. More than just a promotion, the posters connect the work of these powerful artists with new audiences, including the vital Chicano and Latino communities. The campaign expands visibility for CIIS and its arts offerings, including The Arts at CIIS, the MFA programs, and Public Programs.

About CIIS

California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) is a nationally recognized leader in integral education. CIIS has an enrollment of 1,400 students pursuing degrees in seventeen academic programs in its schools of Professional Psychology, Consciousness and Transformation, and Undergraduate Studies. In addition, CIIS hosts a vibrant array of events through its Public Programs division, including workshops, concerts, and conferences. The Institute sponsors six award-winning counseling centers offering low-cost mental health services in the San Francisco Bay Area. For more information about CIIS, visit ciis.edu.