Create an altar to a
notable Latina/o figure that has passed away:
First do some research on
the spiritual, religious, and artistic dimensions of the altar-building tradition
in the Americas. For many generations the tradition of altar building was
carried on by women within the home. More recently it has been taken up by
Latina/o artists as an aesthetic form, and even deployed as a medium of
political expression by Latina/o activists.
The idea is to create much
more than a bio page, but to draw inspiration from the artistic and spiritual
tradition of altar construction and design a page that expresses your
particular vision of the significance of the individual you choose to honor.
Possible altar subjects
include:
v
Gloria
Anzalda, Tejana poet, critic, author of Borderlands/la frontera
v
Pedro
Pietri, Puerto Rican poet, poet laureate for the Young Lords Party
v
Cesar
Chavez, Civil Rights activist, founder of the UFW
v
Thomas
Rivera, educator, author, scholar
v
Jose
Mart, 19th century transnational intellectual, Cuban freedom fighter
v
Americo
Peredes, Mexican American folklorist
v
Anthony
Quinn, Irish Mexican actor and two-time Oscar winner
v
Dolores
del Rio, Mexican-born actress.
v
Arturo
Islas, Author, The Rain Gods
v
Rita
Hayworth, actress
v
Emma
Tenayuca, Tejana labor activist
v
Roberto
Clemente, Puerto Rican baseball player
v
Freddie Prince, Jr., Puerto Rican actor and comedian
v
Tito
Puente, Puerto Rican bandleader, composer and percussionist.
v
Julian
Samora, educator, sociologist
v
Celia Cruz, Cuban-born singer, known as "the queen of salsa".
v
Selena, Tejana singer
v
Desi Arnez, Cuban born actor, producer
v
Miguel Piero, Nuyorican poet, playwright, actor
Download images from the
web, check out art books and scan the images, or take a look at art magazines
that feature Latina/o artists. But don't just upload the images with
descriptions. We want you to curate this exhibition. Which means that you
should come up with a theme, choose a selection of works that embody this theme
in the broadest sense, and then put them together in an artful and
thought-provoking way. You should include the following in your exhibition:
1) An Introduction to the exhibition that articulates
the particular theme of your exhibit addresses its interconnection with
Latina/o expressive culture (either historical or contemporary) and expresses
your reasons for choosing the works of art.
2) Biographical entries on the artists whose work you
have chosen to display.
3) A short art review (written by you) that examines
each art piece individually and addresses the work's appropriateness to your
theme.
4) Remember to include attributions for all of the
images you use. This means citing both the artist that created them and the
book, website, or magazine that you borrowed them from.
This project is similar to
the gallery projectŠexcept that it asks you to think about Latina/o expressive
culture from a textual perspective. Go to the library and take a look at
anthologies of Latina/o writing. What kind of works do they include? How are
the authors' contributions divided or grouped? Why do you think that so much of
Latina/o writing is produced or gathered in anthologies? Imagine putting
together your own anthology. What works would you include? How would you
organize it? What illustrations might you include? Make sure to include the
following in your anthology:
1) An Introduction to the anthology that explains the
particular theme of your collection or your rationale for bringing these
authors together. In your introduction make sure you address the historical
significance of the works you have chosen (are they contemporary, are they
historical, do they span a series of years?)
2) Biographical entries on the authors whose work you
have chosen to include.
3) A short review (written by you) that examines each
contribution individually and addresses the work's appropriateness to your
theme.
4) Remember to include full references for all of the
texts that you use. This means citing both the author and the book, website, or
magazine that you borrowed them from.
First, research the
significance of Casitas for Puerto Rican communities. "Casitas" are generally
an urban phenomena, and can be found scattered throughout Latina/o
neighborhoods in New York City. Usually built in abandoned lots using recycled
materials, Casitas are spaces where community members can come together and
relax, talk, and interact. Take a look at some pictures of Casitas, think about
how they represent an alternative space for community meaning-making. Create a cyber casita and decide on a
general theme of Puerto Rican history or culture that you would like to
address. Can you think of a way to represent community history using the Casita
form? For example, you could focus on migration patterns, cultural nationalism,
Young Lords party, etc.
Imagine you have just
relocated to Washtenaw County. Maybe you come from Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico,
or Cuba; or perhaps you are form another city in the US with a large Latina/o
Community like Los Angeles or New York. What community resources might you need
to feel at home? Your job is to
create a website that lists services available to Latina/os in Washtenaw
County. The following information would be useful, but is by no means a
complete list. Use the list below, but also build on it as you find out more
about the needs of Latina/os in Washtenaw County:
You can go in several
directions with this project. The important thing to remember is that you
should use the various musical forms created by Latina/os to express the
demographic, cultural and political transformations of the 20th (and
21st) century. You might create a map of the United States (and the
Caribbean) and chart the movement of musical forms linking it to migration
patterns. Or perhaps you could create a timeline of Cuban, Puerto Rican, or
Mexican history and link important historical moments to key Latina/o musical
forms like Salsa, Plena, or Conjunto music. While it is desirable that you use actual samples of music to
illustrate your point, make sure that you follow university guidelines for working
with MP3s.