THE HOME I NEVER KNEW: NI DE AQUÍ, NI DE ALLÁ
June 7 - November 1, 2024
Greenville Museum of Art | West Wing & Commons Galleries
Andressia Ramirez
“I hope that through all the work that we do and what we are giving to our communities, this can be a place where we can freely show who we are in our identities.”
En busca de un hogar
2018
photography
ARTIST STATEMENT
“Alexa, play Son de la Negra.” Two minutes and 58 seconds is how long it takes to be transported to Mexico. At least that’s what I’ve always felt when I watch my mother dance folklore. The sound of the violin and guitar, the mariachi singing, nails hitting against the wood flooring, and seeing how her skirt transforms into wings. I get goosebumps and hear how my heart screams at me, “This is where you are from, Morena!” When I first exhibited this photograph, I was a first-generation Latina trying to convey all of this to an audience that would never understand. Since then, it has become a metaphor for my experience living in the hyphen between Mexican-American. Seeking to belong. But now, it is here where its essence is appreciated, where you do not need an explanation, and instead, it transmits what Mexico is for you, what it is for me. It has finally found a home, and that home is you.
DECLARACIÓN DEL ARTISTA
“Alexa, toca Son de la Negra.” Dos minutos con 58 segundos es cuanto se toma para transportarte a México. Al menos eso es lo que siempre he sentido al ver a mi madre bailar folclórico. El sonido del violín y la guitarra, el canto del mariachi, los clavos pegando contra la tarima y ver cómo su falda se vuelve alas. Se me enchina la piel y escucho como mi corazón me grita, “¡De aquí eres morena!” Cuando primero exhibí esta fotografía, era una estudiante de primera generación intentando transmitir todo esto a una audiencia que nunca lo entendería. Desde entonces se ha vuelto una metáfora de mi experiencia viviendo en el guión entre ser mexicano-americana. Buscando pertenecer. Pero ahora, es aquí donde se aprecia su esencia, donde no necesitas una explicación y transmite lo que es México para ti, lo que es para mí. Por fin ha encontrado su hogar y ese hogar eres tú.