Make ‘Em All Mexican
Linda Vallejo’s mixed-media series Make ‘Em All Mexican satirically “makes brown” icons of American and European popular culture, skewering the politics of race and skin color in the United States. Her project is shaped by her childhood experiences of racism in the Deep South and by her international art education, which fed her desire to develop an art practice that could support dialogue across racial and cultural difference that might lead to whatshe calls the “possibility of unity.”
CHON NORIEGA
Fred and Barney, 2012 | F: 11.5 x 5 x 4.5 in, B: 9.75 x 5 x 5 in | acrylic, repurposed rubber
Super Hombre II, 2015 | 26 x 26 x 16 in | acrylic, metal flake, repurposed plastic
El Vis, 2012 | 12.5 x 7.5 x 5.5 in | acrylic, 14k gold leaf, pigment print of original painting, repurposed plaster
Ares + Aphrodita, 2013 | Cat. no. LIV40 | 15 x 7 x 3.5 in | acrylic, 14k gold leaf, repurposed composite figurine
Reclining Venus, 2012 | 13 x 22 x 5.5 in | acrylic, 14k gold leaf, repurposed plaster | from the collection of Bruce Johnston and Tom Noll
Marielena Viva, 2013 | 17.5 x 8 x 6 in | repurposed plaster, solid silver leaf, acrylic
La Mona, 2014 | 40 x 27 in | acrylic, aluminum sublimation print
Marielena I-IV, 2014 | 40 x 40 in | acrylic, aluminum sublimation print
Brown Oscars: Aurora Hernandez, 2016 | 11 x 8.5 in | gouache, photographic print, water color paper
Make ‘Em All Mexican leads you down an ironic path to find yourself confronted by some of the most difficult questions of our time, “Do race, color, and class define our status in the world?” “Is it possible to be a part of and earnestly contribute to multiple cultures simultaneously?” “Does color and class define our understanding and appreciation of culture?”
To date I have produced hundreds of Make ‘Em All Mexican images from repurposed porcelain and plaster figurines, antique postcards and magazine pages, paintings and posters found in antique stores, yard sales, and estate sales. I literally take precious images of national and world culture and “make them Mexican” by painting them brown.
Digitized ephemera from exhibitions, publications, and special projects, hundreds of art images with details, and a video library.
