Art Analysis Post: Tamalada
Culture has a huge impact and effect on many different paintings, sculptures and other works of art. It's fascinating to see how different cultures can be seen and felt through these works of art. The artwork below represents the culinary practice and cultural tradition of a community when making a very popular Mexican dish, tamales. The painting is based on her childhood growing up in the South Texas Mexican American community but it was created in San Francisco. It's so interesting how something as small as food can bring loved ones together, from different generations, to create beautiful memories and traditions. The painting created by Carmen Lomas Garza in 1990 is called Tamalada.
There are different details to each part of the painting:
- On the left side, you can see the individuals in the family who know how to make the delicious tamales or those who are "in the know" while also including the kids that seek to learn the tradition.
- By the doorway, you can see a man with possibly his daughter, observing the making of the tamales.
- On the bottom right, we can see the artist who included a self-portrait where she is seen tub soaking corn husks with her grandfather, grandmother and sister.
I'm not Mexican but I am Dominican and we share a very similar tradition that consists of the same process as making the tamales, it's just with different ingredients and we call them pasteles or pastel en hoja.
I vividly remember how warm I felt inside watching and helping my family members make these pasteles and how much we talked, argued and laughed! Paintings like this make me feel all the emotions because they brings a lot of great memories, it reminds me of how fast time flies and how something as simple as food can bring loved ones together-all these feelings just by looking at one piece of art.
References
Flaherty, George. "Carmen Lomas Garza, Tamalada". Smart History: The center for public art history. 30 November, 2023.
Ashley, I thought your blog showcased beautiful writing and deeply personal insights, which resulted in an engaging, heartfelt exploration of culture and tradition. The way you demonstrate art's power to trigger memories and emotions while linking diverse cultural experiences through similar practices fascinates me. Your analysis of Tamalada by Carmen Lomas Garza is insightful, especially your interpretation of the vibrant colors and the symbolic presence of The Last Supper in the background.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite aspects of your post is how you connect your Dominican heritage to the themes in the painting. Drawing parallels between tamales and pasteles emphasizes the universal power of food in bringing families together. Your anecdotes make the post relatable and rich with emotion.
Seeing art through a cultural lens is the most important part of understanding the storytelling of an art piece I feel. Your perspective on the piece is beautiful and it's nice that this painting evokes a warm, happy feeling for you. I think the use of colors in it are meant to bring up feelings of warmth and family. But from another perspective, I can see the painting as something quite sad. There are many people who did not get to experience moments like this and I can see them looking at this painting with a sense of longing and wondering how nice it must be to do these family activities. In a way, I feel that could make the feeling more powerful because it shows how even moments that people think are small or normal can mean so much to someone who doesn't get that experience.
ReplyDeleteI really love the storytelling in this painting and how it shows food bringing people together. The vibrant colors and high contrast make the piece feel lively and full of warmth.
ReplyDeleteThis painting is so fun! There's so much going on and so much to look at and interpret. I love that this is a depiction of the painter's lifestyle and that she added herself as well. The colors catch your eye immediately and bring a sense of familiarity and love to the piece, its almost like you can hear the conversations going on. I also like your interpretation of it too, with the 12 apostles and the 12 tamale makers.
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