Cristina Cárdenas

C. Cárdenas: Well, I graduated in 1990. By that time, I already have what I mentioned before, all the grants, the scholarship, the residency, all that offered, and more in the future. So, that's when I said: "I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to stay." And... Can I say something about the bark paper? Because I'm sure they're gonna-

M. Téllez: Absolutely!

C. Cárdenas: Well, the bark paper is a fiber. It's made of bark, and it's called from the Amate Tree. Is made... That is why I think it's important to mention this because it's made by the Otomi. But this is one of the first books in America. The Mayas use it, the Chichimecas use it. This is called Los Codices, the codex. All the codex that you see is made, most of them, it's in bark paper. And the bark paper, as I said, is from bark. And they had to soak the bark. And it's a process, and that's the same process they're using since pre-Columbian times. Since, Aztecs times. Yeah.

M. Téllez: And why was it important for you to start using it?

C. Cárdenas: It's hard to say. When I saw it, I just fell in love. Especially because most of my big pieces, all my pieces in bark paper, they're big. They're four by eight, four feet by eight feet. So just to see, and the texture is so inviting to invite you to start painting and to try to experiment what the paper can give you.

C. Cárdenas: Because in Mexico it was more, we call it in art, "art for the arts." So basically, it doesn't mean that the piece has a lot of meaning. It's all about to be beautiful, the colors and all that. It's still, I mean, sometimes I do that. But when I moved to the university, I found out that you had to identify yourself. You had to really, which I was not crazy about it. I didn't like that, teachers, who would do an attack: "How did you consider yourself?" And I started to remember in those time, I started doing hearts. Because I come from a Catholic background, and hearts that were always in the Sagrado Corazon, always in my house, right? So, in one of the critiques, they said that it was related to Valentine's Day. And so I was in shock and I said: "I better wake up because you are in a different place. You had to talk about your community. You had to identify what is your values and your traditions, and try to be a bridge, and try to educate people about Mexico." And in that time, it was not really good time that… Well, it hasn't been with all the immigration not working well, but it was a time that president de Panama was taken to jail in the United States. And I remember doing a... I always tried to be controversial, I was more before, when I was younger, but… Noriega. Noriega, Presidente Noriega, he was taken to the United States in a jail for no reason, because they had an interest in the Canal de Panama. So I did a show. I applied to have a small show that we used to have in the art department gallery, right? So I did a long piece, and I said, “Fuera Gringos de Panama,” hands out. Oh, my God, they almost closed the gallery because they said they were offended by gringos, which I still don't understand why. So I started doing very political pieces, especially in lithography. Immigrant. And I can show you some of that, it will talk by itself about all the problems and issues going on in the border. But it was a lot of people dying. It was more people than that. That was the time that in the train, it was like 200 people die because... As an artist, I feel that we had a big commitment to talk with visuals, about the underrepresented communities. So my art started saying that. And, I mean, since the beginning, this is who am I. This is what I'm trying to say. This is what the public needs to get from me. And in the meantime, I wanted to be really express my interest to self-conscious, be very proud of my heritage, my traditions and my family.

C. Cárdenas: a permanent and positive voice. I create from the perspective of a woman artist born in Mexico, and now in El Otro Lado in Tucson, Arizona, and had been working and living at the border region for more than three decades.

M. Téllez: Beautiful. Thank you. Did you have any questions?

V. Ramirez: I noticed that when you were talking about your inspirations, you talk a lot about… I heard a lot of male names on there. How do you think your art or your work would be different if you were inspired or surrounded yourself by women?

C. Cárdenas: Well, I was. But in the times, '90s, late '80s, that was mostly men in museums, curators. So, I mean, I can tell you that Peggy Dugan, the professor, and it was two women professors, Rosemary Bernardi, who left later. And in Mexico, of course, we had the tradition of Frida Kahlo, Maria Izquierdo, Leonora Carrington, who happens to be English, but lived in Mexico for all her life. And Remedios Varo, ex-patriot. But all those influences and all this magic world that they represent, some of them, they definitely I have influence on them.

V. Ramirez: And what about personally, like people that were around you?

C. Cárdenas: It was a time that the Chicanas, Guadalupe Castillo and Raquel Goldsmith and... Let me think who else it was? Judy Baca. Doctors... Sister Karen in self-care graphic.I mean, it was a few women, but I'm sorry. And thank you for letting me know that. Yeah, it was basically men who helped me. Yeah. And it's not because I have any problems with anybody, or any confrontation or anything. They were just not in that level. Now that they are the director of the U of A Museum, Olivia, I don't remember her last name, it's a woman. Before, of course... And the curator that it took the Museum of Art is a woman, and the head of the Hispanic Research Center is a woman. I mean before it didn't happen. You guys have better perspective in life.

M. Téllez: Yeah. Well, you were one of the first then, really, woman. One of the first Mexicana, Chicanas, to sort of be doing the kind of art and the representation of your community and heritage, all the things that you've described. I mean, you're of that generation.

C. Cárdenas: Well, thank you for recognize that. Because before me, I haven't found anybody, any women in my… The previous generation, I'm not really, knowledge on that. but, I mean, a big name that it really jumped from Arizona and the Southwest, especially in Arizona, I haven't… And now we have a lot of women muralists in town, that I'm really happy to see them, and that they're pushing hard. That's wonderful. But before I didn't have a role model, I didn't. It was Judy Baca. It was Judy Baca who was the one who was breaking the barriers with all the Chicano males in Los Angeles.