The Virgin

Artist Statement:

My video essay is about the everyday experience I have being of mixed race, and how I never feel fully accepted by either side of my heritage because of appearance, privilege, and historical factors. I wrote a personal essay that focuses on the legend of El Virgen de Guadalupe, an early Mexican catholic tale about the Virgin Mary. I chose this legend because it is reflective of my catholic heritage, Spanish heritage, and Mexican heritage as well as of the propaganda I was fed as a child about the happy colonization of South America. I chose to take pictures of objects and things that I genuinely enjoy, as well as things that make me uncomfortable, and by pairing them together I hoped to convey a subtle conflict, much like the one I feel within myself. I chose to include music because music is very much a part of everyday experience, and the specific artist I chose is reflective of my love for the Spanish language and Latin music (also Manu Chao is very political and informed). The hardest part about this project was keeping my perspective balanced, and not leaning towards identifying with one half more than the other. In the future I would like to better address the importance of privilege in this conflict, as well as include more in the recorded text. Overall, I hope that this video informs about the everyday experience of being a person of two cultures–two cultures that aren’t all that different from each other but still retain their distinctions–in a world where race, gender, and privilege are still very contentious and relevant issues.

Artist Bio:

Ynez, Junior, 19, Santa Cruz to Olympia, Meta Babe, Mega Flake.