My SALPICA experience (so far)

First of all, I wish so much I could write all this in Spanish so my Central American Brothers and Sisters could read it, but I just can’t, I tried…. If anyone is incline to translate, please do so.
Second of all: sorry my English grammar is not so good , and I don’t do Spanglish well either…

The SALPICA experiment has become a permanent tattoo in my brain. From what at certain times seemed like a haphazard, chaotic situation, I now feel a tremendous respect for the how we traveled, where we went, and the order in which things were planned.

Amherst: Upper middle class, suburban liberal college town, and- to bring some spice to that- living with a bunch of great people in a beautiful 1700’s house. And thanks for the Mexican food and the DANCING! It’s been about eighteen years since I’ve done that.

Washington DC: Sanitized, Anglo, Cold monuments. The iconography of what “represents” the force, power and political control of North America. “High Art”, museums, and of course the WHITE HOUSE.

New York: My home, or what has become my immigrant adopted home. A place in where I feel in control and comfortable, except that I am a born a Dominican who never has been to Spanish Harlem or Washington Heights; (my maternal Grandfather lives there, I just have not seen since I first arrived here when I was 18) Yes, even in New York, even as an immigrant, even as someone who couldn’t speak the language, I managed to hide behind my pale skin color to never associate, with what was most inherent in me. As part of my SALPICA project planning to find my Grandfather and giving him an DNA test, not to determine relationship, but to determine the particular ethnicity of my family line. I would have never found this out, if it weren’t for this estrange and everlasting SALPICA experiment. And then, we went to the Tenement museum: It threw me away for a LOOP! I am so grateful to have had that experience. The exposure to this particular lost the history of immigration, not in a way that I had read in a books, but as the heartfelt story of one Irish family. I felt moved; I felt that the immigration history expanded from to place much wider than my own experience.

New Mexico: WOW NM! From the fabulous Folk museum, the best place in the world right now for me, to the rich white snobs, in super over priced Santa Fe, to the drama of the wonderful Acoma people, to going down through that wonderful (and scary) rock formation, to ending at Casinolandia….what I can say. And yes, the way that the light changed, that the climate changed, the way that each particular placed smelled. … NM was absolutely wonderful. I am not a religious person, in fact, I am an Atheist, but NM, I felt something there. Especially when the Acoma tour guide (Gustavo, he said his name was) got quiet, or when I lost the group on purpose, just to be alone and feel the arid climate, the vast light, the entire landscape filled my peripheral vision. If only Gustavo knew, that he had to say nothing, do nothing, that I GOT IT. In silence.

Los Angeles: Arriving at gorgeous Santa Monica (I had a view of the water from my room, how plush is that !) where people were very, very pretty…to going to the community college with their priceless art treasures buried in the basement, filled with dust, to seeing the pride they take in that (sorry to say this) awful school mural, to then being exposed to the most amazing Xicano’s Murals. I LOVED the art of the people.

I just got say: You go SALPICA! (Mark, Ilan, Ed, Edgardo, Alethea, Abril, and a whole bunch off people I’m missing) You gave me the time of my life. I came to this program to find an answers to the old questions of who am I as immigrant in this country? Where do I stand, as an educated “American” when my English is as broken as my Spanish? How do I fit? Well, you had left me with more questions than those that I came with. You exposed me to what it meant to an American from cold monuments-to high art museums-to Indian drama-to Native American spirituality-to the Xicano struggle and back to questioning myself. You had shaken me from my NY confront zone, from pre- disposed art, and from self-indulgences. I thank you from that.
There is so much more to say, from the importance of language and hearing my own voice in my native toque, from understanding that must of I what I say (in either English or Spanish) gets lost in translation (inside my own brain) and from my experience with the rest of the artists, with the art process itself, with the many expectations from the curators, and my own misconceptions, also, with the way I see my work now, etc. But for now I will shut up.

More later,
Carmen

PS
You should had given me the exit questioner late, you know, after I have rested, reflected and emotions are more under control…

PICTURES IN DC

Increíble!

Saludos a todos!!! gente increíble de SALPICA que continúan salpicando este país con su talento y su energía tan contagiosa! No pude resisitir las ganas de saludarlos aunque sea por este medio y decirles que tuve el honor de ver algunas fotos de los lugares que han estado visitando, y sé que sonaré muy cursi, pero se me llenaron los ojos de lágrimas por la emoción de verlos de nuevo en todos esos lugares tan lindos que han estado viendo! No puedo creer que la primera fase de este intercambio esté llegando al final, siento que fue ayer cuando recibía a los primeros 3 participantes del programa en la estación del tren. Les mando un abrazo enorme y espero que les gusten los detallitos que ITD preparó para ustedes. Reciban todo mi cariño. (I just wanted to stop by this blog and say hi to all of you and let you know that watching your pictures filled my eyes with tears and it was just increrdible to see your faces at all the places you are visiting! It's hard to believe the first phase of this exchange is almost over and I hope you like the little things ITD got for you. I miss you and receive all my love)

New York Y sus 'arboles gigantes

Buenos d'ias Am'erica, saludos atodos los americanos (desde los que estan mas arriba de Alaska y hasta los que estan mas abaja de Sur America) DIOS LES ;BENDIGA
Estoy perdido entre los arboles construidos por el hombre, que en el d'ia te tapa el sol
en la noche esconde la luna,
Este es otro mundo. (en la forma figurativa,) tiene su propio sol y sus propias estrellas.
podria pasar varios anos de mi vida y ni aun a si podre visitarlo todo
NEW YORK. ES UNICO
FACTOR TIEMPO PARA ESCRIBIR Y FALTA DE COMPUTADORAS EN ESTE HOTEL
SALUDOS Abraham

El maiz fuente de vida

Saludos:
Bendiciones
el museo de arte del indigena estado unidense es una casa grande y aquitectonicamente
hablando es guauuuuuuuu
El maiz definitivamente es el alimento sagrado en estas tierras de am'erica
su mundo es el mismo de donde vengo un mundo de vida
hay que estar con ellos para comprender mejor el planeta y especialmente el planeta
tierra
bendiciones
me voy hay gente haciendo cola para usar el internet
bendiciones
de coraz'on
Abraham

hambre insaciable

SALUDOS AMIGOS DE SALPICA
Amanecio HOY DOMINGO 10 DE MAYO Un d'ia especial para la madrecitas lindas
No es que se me haya olvidado de saludar a las madres queridas, pero la verdad tenia mucha hambre de conocer y el deseo grande de empezar el dia; Simplemente esperando el dia con hombre de caminar en la calles y avenidad del Nido de arte. No dejaba de pensar como me iba comer todo ese manjar que me esperaba y ?cual? me preguntaba que iba ser para saborear
la entradita de ese bufe. Hayyyyyyyyyyyy caramba!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! que sorrrrrrrrrpresa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
creanme aun estoy empachado, y estare asi por un buen tiempo. !!!!!Que museos por Dios!!!!!!!!!! y que obras!!!!!!!!!!!! Bueno creanme llevo en mi loncherita un camarita sencillita
algo para el camino ,ya que no pude digerir todo y como pude me lo trague . es que se necesitaba mas tiempo era un falto de respeto no platicar con los hijos de los grandes maestros,
Ja y la experiencia de la eronave civil.ESTA HISTORIA CONTINUARA TENGO SUENO
SENORES DE SALPICA DIOS LES BENDIGA

Creating tomorrow today...

The best thing I heard today was Benjamin explaining to me about la nueva propia historia and how today we are creating tomorrows new traditions. Being surrounded by all the indigenous perspectives here helps me understand my place in the world better and how as a Xicana, my role is to contribute to our everchanging world view today.

putting the trip in trip

So yea. This is an experiment alright. If the purpose is to test the boundaries and limitations of state funded art, then the roster is equipped for such a task.

Espero que les haya gustado Boston :)

I hope you liked visiting Boston

ITD - SALPICA

Hello everyone! Welcome to the itd-salpica blog page! We hope you start posting your comments, expectations, ideas and/or whatever else you wish to express for this program. We are looking forward to meeting you all tomorrow.

Hola a todos! Bienvenidos al blog de itd-salpica! Esperamos que comiencen a fijar sus comentarios, expectativas, ideas y/o cualquier otra cosa que deseen expresar acerca de este programa. Estamos ansiosos por conocerlos a todos mañana.