Things can be and not be at the same time
Medium: Installation with Film
Dimensions: 42"w x 29.5"h x 19"d
A sex symbol becomes a thing
Screen print on mixed medium
Dimensions: 18”w x 60”h
Raquel Jo Tejada (AKA Raquel Welch)
This work investigates how the notion of Latina feminism is rooted in the social, cultural, and political within its historical period. The emphasis on this installation is on how historically Latinas have used material femininity and female sexuality as a method of advancement for women's equity to overcome systems of oppression. The installation highlights how the sex symbol Raquel Welch (Jo Raquel Tejada) of bi-racial Bolivian descent subverts the stereotypical classic victim of exploitation of the patriarchal movie industry by arousing, managing, and profiting from male desire. The concept includes how norms of sexuality play a role in negotiating complex identities (race/ethnicity, culture, class and gender) and permeate all aspects of experience. As contemporary society now appears to be more accepting in celebrating women's sexuality, justified by sexual autonomy, the work questions if it can flourish when colonialism, oppression, and patriarchy continues to exist.