Maya Christina Gonzalez

Last updated
Maya Christina Gonzalez
Born1964
Lancaster, California
NationalityAmerican
Known forChildren's book illustrations, Chicana art

Maya Christina Gonzalez (born 1964) is a queer Chicana artist, illustrator, educator and publisher. [1] She lives and works in San Francisco. Gonzalez is a co-founder of the publishing house, Reflection Press. [2] [3] She also co-created an online learning environment called School of the Free Mind. [4] Gonzalez has a unique, "high queer femme" sense of personal style that includes piercings and multiple tattoos. [5] Gonzalez's art and work are focused on helping others build a sense of self and connection to others and the environment, despite differences between individuals. [6] Her illustrations and books have helped increase "acceptance of, and love for, children's books by and about Latinos." [7] Her art is featured on the cover of a textbook, Contemporary Chicana and Chicano Art: Artists, Works, Culture, and Education, Volume II. [8] Gonzalez teaches and presents workshops around the United States. [9]

Contents

Biography

González was born in Lancaster, California into a biracial home: her mother was German and her father Mexican. [2] Gonzalez has one brother, a year younger than her. [10] When Gonzalez was seven, she had an accident which caused her to be a coma for three days. [11] After recovering, she found gifts waiting for her, including a pad of paper and colored pencils. This early gift inspired her to start drawing and introduced her to how art can help heal. [11] In addition to art supplies, she was also taken to classes at a local craft store in order to help her recover fully. [10] For several years, Gonzalez was "deeply Catholic" and used the family Bible and Michelangelo as a drawing source and inspiration. [10]

At age thirteen, Gonzalez and her family moved to rural Oregon where she experienced racism and homophobia. [5] In Oregon, she was considered "exotic" and called a "mulatto." [12] Gonzalez didn't intend to become an artist for a living [8] and has little formal art training. [12] She changed her mind about art after studying creative writing at the University of Oregon. While she enjoyed poetry, she found the departments culture to be very focused on white-male experiences and the language and topics used to be “exclusive and hierarchical.” Gonzalez decided that art was a more "inclusive and complicated" way for her to express herself. [2] She was drawn to art because it was more accessible than writing and she could be less explicit with her imagery. This is when she began painting. Gonzalez was prompted to move from Oregon to San Francisco after she was shot at while living in a lesbian wilderness community. [5] She also found that she would be better able to pursue her artistic dreams in San Francisco where she still lives today. [13] Gonzalez has become estranged from her parents who disowned her [13] when she came out at age 20 as part of the LGBT community At that time she became very involved with the LGBTQIA+ community and the politics surrounding them. [10]

After leaving school with only a few art classes taken, Gonzalez explored creating her own art. At this time, Gonzales was interested in exploring the nature of "reality, consciousness and how these relate to creativity" and was very influenced by Jane Roberts' channeling of another consciousness that Roberts referred to as Seth. Harriet Rohmer, the original founder of Children's Book Press (now an imprint of Lee&Low Books). Harriet asked if she would be interested in illustrating children's books which is ultimately what lead Gonzal to her passion for illustrating. Gonzalez said it felt as if she had “come home.” [13]

In 1996, Gonzalez suffered from a toxic dose of chemicals in a print-making accident. [13] The accident caused her to be incapacitated for three years and very sick for ten more. [13] During her illness, she traveled out of the United States for the first time, going to India and visiting the city of Varanasi, which she considered a sacred place. [10] She also went to Brazil to work with Ayauasca, a "plant teacher." [10] Ayauasca identified Gonzalez's illness as heavy metal poisoning in 2003 and eventually began to receive treatment in various forms. [10] After her health returned, Gonzalez began to create more art, and also received a grant from the San Francisco Arts Commission to create a series, Healing Through. The series what completes and shown in 2008/09, around the same time she wrote her first book, My Colors, My World. [10]

González has two children and is married to Reflection Press co-founder, Matthew. [3] Reflection Press focuses on children's book that are considered "radical and revolutionary." [14] She says that "the freaks and geeks need to tell their stories and kids need to hear them and relate to them," and that major, established publishing houses won't publish those kinds of books. [1] Of her family, Gonzalez says that her domestic life is such that the "dominant culture" would have "absolutely no ideas what to do with somebody like me...I'm in line with my beliefs and completely out of line with the beliefs of the dominant culture." [5]

Work

Gonzalez's art depicts non-stereotypical images of people, including overweight individuals and empowered women. [5] She often includes a chimeric sense of nepantla in her art, depicting human-like figures who are not completely part of any category or world. [5] Her portraits and self-portraits are "hybridized," redefining women using "elements drawn from Mexican history." [2] Her figures are considered "sensuously curvaceous." [15] Gonzalez's art also shows a connection of the individual to the environment. [5] González was influenced by the work of Frida Kahlo, [16] and reinterprets that artist's life through use of her image and artistic legacy. [2] Gonzalez uses many different techniques to create her art, including "acrylics, collage, cut paper, photography, pastels and charcoal." [13] Gonzalez feels that creating art is a spiritual process. [2] Her work often draws from many sources of mythology, like the Aztecs, and traditional spiritual icons like the Virgin of Guadalupe. [17] Other sources of inspiration include pop culture and her own imagination. [8] Her paintings combine her inspirations to "work out impulses with culled, blended imagery." [15] For some time after her illness, Gonzalez worked with a more limited pallet. [12]

González was inspired to illustrate after meeting Harriet Rohmer, the founder of Children's Book Press. [18] She has illustrated over twenty books and written some on her own. Gonzalez considers it very important as a child to see oneself depicted in books. [13] [19] Gonzalez wants children to know that they belong by using her illustrations to create inclusive books. [20] She wants to illustrate difficult situations and feelings for children, so that they feel less "alone." [21] Her illustrations for children include individuals who are not seen as often in books, such as gay characters and overweight characters. [5] For illustrations in Francisco X. Alarcon's stories, Gonzalez had to fight to keep the image of an overweight boy who was meant to mirror Alarcon himself. [5] Gonzalez also hides "secret" images in her illustrations. [22] Gonzalez hid her first secret image in her illustrations for Laughing Tomatoes. [23] Her first written and illustrated children's book was My Colors, My World. [10]

Environmental concerns are important in Gonzalez's work. [5] She has been praised for her raising awareness of the environment with young people. [24] I Know the River Loves Me/Yo Que El Rio Me Ama (2009), depicts a Chicana girl visiting a river. [13] As she spends more time exploring, the sepia-tones of the illustrations give way to more and more color. The book was considered a "beautiful story." [25] I Know the River Loves Me is about "belonging to the world" and having a "relationship with nature." [26] Gonzalez feels that such relationships with the environment are "a very Chicano experience." [13]

Call Me Tree: Llámame árbol, was described as "vibrantly hued" and a "good choice for story hour dramatizations." [27] It is also significant in not using any gendered pronouns in the story. [1] Call Me Tree was included in the "prestigious" list curated by Kirkus Reviews, "Best Children's Books of 2014." [28] Her writing for Call Me Tree was also praised by Kirkus Reviews, saying that Gonzalez "excels at using few words to evoke grand imagery." [29]

González also creates activity books, many of which go along with the curriculum of the School of the Free Mind. [18] Her activity books cover topics that are not often discussed in schools or at home, such as understanding gender. [18] The activity book, Gender Now (2010), explores how there are "multiple levels of gender expression." [30] It was also the first book for children to "explore transgender topics" [31] and intersex topics. [32]

Bibliography

Books written and illustrated by González:

Books illustrated by González:

Awards

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sandra Cisneros</span> American writer (born 1954)

Sandra Cisneros is an American writer. She is best known for her first novel, The House on Mango Street (1983), and her subsequent short story collection, Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories (1991). Her work experiments with literary forms that investigate emerging subject positions, which Cisneros herself attributes to growing up in a context of cultural hybridity and economic inequality that endowed her with unique stories to tell. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, was awarded one of 25 new Ford Foundation Art of Change fellowships in 2017, and is regarded as a key figure in Chicano literature.

Cherríe Moraga is a Chicana feminist, writer, activist, poet, essayist, and playwright. She is part of the faculty at the University of California, Santa Barbara in the Department of English. Moraga is also a founding member of the social justice activist group La Red Chicana Indígena, which is an organization of Chicanas fighting for education, culture rights, and Indigenous Rights.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gloria E. Anzaldúa</span> American feminist scholar (1942–2004)

Gloria Evangelina Anzaldúa was an American scholar of Chicana feminism, cultural theory, and queer theory. She loosely based her best-known book, Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza (1987), on her life growing up on the Mexico–Texas border and incorporated her lifelong experiences of social and cultural marginalization into her work. She also developed theories about the marginal, in-between, and mixed cultures that develop along borders, including on the concepts of Nepantla, Coyoxaulqui imperative, new tribalism, and spiritual activism. Her other notable publications include This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color (1981), co-edited with Cherríe Moraga.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ana Castillo</span> American writer

Ana Castillo is a Chicana novelist, poet, short story writer, essayist, editor, playwright, translator and independent scholar. Considered one of the leading voices in Chicana experience, Castillo is most known for her experimental style as a Latina novelist and for her intervention in Chicana feminism known as Xicanisma.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chicana feminism</span> Sociopolitical movement

Chicana feminism is a sociopolitical movement, theory, and praxis that scrutinizes the historical, cultural, spiritual, educational, and economic intersections impacting Chicanas and the Chicana/o community in the United States. Chicana feminism empowers women to challenge institutionalized social norms and regards anyone a feminist who fights for the end of women's oppression in the community.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yolanda López</span> Mexican-American painter and activist (1942–2021)

Yolanda Margarita López was an American painter, printmaker, educator, and film producer. She was known for her Chicana feminist works focusing on the experiences of Mexican-American women, often challenging the ethnic stereotypes associated with them. Lopez was recognized for her series of paintings which re-imagined the image of the Virgen de Guadalupe. Her work is held in several public collections including the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Ester Hernández is a California Bay Area Chicana visual artist recognized for her prints and pastels focusing on farm worker rights, cultural, political, and Chicana feminist issues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chicano poetry</span> Subgenre of Mexica-American literature

Chicano poetry is a subgenre of Chicano literature that stems from the cultural consciousness developed in the Chicano Movement. Chicano poetry has its roots in the reclamation of Chicana/o as an identity of empowerment rather than denigration. As a literary field, Chicano poetry emerged in the 1960s and formed its own independent literary current and voice.

Cecilia Alvarez is an American Chicana artist known for her oil paintings and murals depicting themes of feminism, poverty, and environmental degradation in the United States and Latin America. Alvarez's painting Las Cuatas Diego has been featured in books and exhibitions around the world. Alvarez has also illustrated the bilingual children's book Antonio's Card authored by Rigoberto González. Her work is collected by the Mexican Fine Arts Museum, the Seattle Art Museum and by the Kaiser Foundation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carmen Lomas Garza</span> American artist and illustrator (born 1948)

Carmen Lomas Garza is an Chicana artist and illustrator. She is well known for her paintings, ofrendas and for her papel picado work inspired by her Mexican-American heritage. Her work is a part of the permanent collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the National Museum of Mexican Art, the San Jose Museum of Art, the Mexican Museum, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and the Oakland Museum of California, among other institutions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lorna Dee Cervantes</span> American poet

Lorna Dee Cervantes is an American poet and activist, who is considered one of the greatest figures in Chicano poetry. She has been described by Alurista as "probably the best Chicana poet active today."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Balmy Alley</span> Street in San Francisco, California

Balmy Alley is a one-block-long alley that is home to the most concentrated collection of murals in the city of San Francisco. It is located in the south central portion of the Inner Mission District between 24th Street and Garfield Square. Since 1973, most buildings on the street have been decorated with a mural.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Francisco X. Alarcón</span> American poet

Francisco Xavier Alarcón was a Chicano poet and educator. He was one of the few Chicano poets to have "gained recognition while writing mostly in Spanish" within the United States. His poems have been also translated into Irish and Swedish. He made many guest appearances at public schools so that he could help inspire and influence young people to write their own poetry especially because he felt that children are "natural poets."

Norma Alarcón is a Chicana author and publisher in the United States. She is the founder of Third Woman Press and a major figure in Chicana feminism. She is Professor Emerita of Chicano/Latino Studies at the University of California, Berkeley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chicana literature</span> Form of literature that has emerged from the Chicana Feminist movement

Chicana literature is a form of literature that has emerged from the Chicana Feminist movement. It aims to redefine Chicana archetypes in an effort to provide positive models for Chicanas. Chicana writers redefine their relationships with what Gloria Anzaldúa has called "Las Tres Madres" of Mexican culture by depicting them as feminist sources of strength and compassion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chicano art movement</span> Movements by Mexican-American artists

The Chicano Art Movement represents groundbreaking movements by Mexican-American artists to establish a unique artistic identity in the United States. Much of the art and the artists creating Chicano Art were heavily influenced by Chicano Movement which began in the 1960s.

Third Woman Press (TWP) is a Queer and Feminist of Color publisher forum committed to feminist and queer of color decolonial politics and projects. It was founded in 1979 by Norma Alarcón in Bloomington, Indiana. She aimed to create a new political class surrounding sexuality, race, and gender. Alarcón wrote that "Third Woman is one forum, for the self-definition and the self-invention which is more than reformism, more than revolt. The title Third Woman refers to that pre-ordained reality that we have been born to and continues to live and experience and be a witness to, despite efforts toward change ..."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Felicia Rice</span>

Felicia Rice is an American book artist, typographer, letterpress printer, fine art publisher, and educator. She lectures and exhibits internationally, and her books can be found in collections from Special Collections, Cecil H. Green Library to the Whitney Museum of American Art to the Bodleian Library. Work from the Press is included in exhibitions and collections both nationally and internationally, and has been the recipient of numerous awards and grants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emma Pérez</span> American author and professor (born 1954)

Emma Pérez is an American author and professor, known for her work in queer Chicana feminist studies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monica Brown (author)</span> Peruvian-American academic and author

Mónica Brown is an American academic and author of children's literature. Known for her Lola Levine and Sarai chapter book series, as well as numerous biographies covering such Latin American luminaries as Tito Puente, Celia Cruz, Dolores Huerta, and Cesar Chavez, she writes relatable characters that highlight the nuance and diversity of the Latinx experience and girl empowerment. Her motivation is to show that bicultural children are not made up of cultural fractions but whole people with a rich and vibrant cultural heritage, such as her character the bicultural red-headed Peruvian-Scottish-American Marisol McDonald. Brown is also an English professor at Northern Arizona University.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Huqueriza, Chris (2 April 2015). "Authors Praise Rise in LGBT-themed kids' books". The Bay Area Reporter. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Freese, Lauren M. (2013). "Frida Kahlo and Chicana Self-Portraiture: Maya Gonzalez, Yreina D. Cervantez, and Cecilia Alvarez". Iowa Research Online. University of Iowa. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Our Story". Reflection Press. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  4. ↑ Gonzalez, Maya (2015). "About Maya". Maya Gonzalez. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Reisberg, Mira (2008). "Maya Gonzalez: Portrait of the Artist as a Radical Children's Book Illustrator" (PDF). Visual Culture & Gender. 3: 53–67. ISSN   1936-1912. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-05.
  6. ↑ "College of Education hosts Maya Christina Gonzalez, artist, author, educator, activist, peacemaker and publisher on April 8". University of South Carolina College of Education. University of South Carolina. 8 April 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  7. ↑ "Meet the Artists". Colorin colorado. Reading Rockets. Archived from the original on 29 March 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  8. 1 2 3 Foley, Maureen (12 February 2004). "Altered State: Painter, Art Nun and Shaman Maya Gonzalez". The Santa Barbara Independent. Archived from the original on 24 June 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2015– via Maya Gonzalez.com.
  9. ↑ Gonzalez, Maya. "About Maya". Maya Gonzalez Curriculum Development and Trainings. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Gonzalez, Maya. "Bio". Maya Gonzalez.com. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  11. 1 2 Goldberg, Dana, ed. (2007). On My Block: Stories and Paintings by Fifteen Artists. New York: Children's Book Press. pp.  11. ISBN   9780892392209.
  12. 1 2 3 Gonzalez, Jessica (16 January 2004). "Artist Imbues Work With Life's Trials". Daily Nexus. Archived from the original on 24 June 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2015– via Maya Gonzalez.com.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Naidoo, Jamie Campbell (2010). Celebrating Cuentos: Promoting Latino Children's Literature and Literacy in Classrooms and Libraries. Libraries Unlimited. pp. 28–35. ISBN   9781591589044 . Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  14. ↑ Karp, Evan (24 December 2014). "The Write Stuff: Maya Gonzalez on Feeling What You Feel When You Feel It". Exhibitionist. SF Weekly. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  15. 1 2 Woodard, Josef (January 2004). "Mixed Heritage, Mixed Meanings: Chicana/o Art Exhibit: Maya Gonzalez". Santa Barbara News-Press Scene Online. Archived from the original on 24 June 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2015– via Maya Gomez.com.
  16. ↑ Pence, Angelica (9 October 2002). "Kahlo Style: Color Passion, Intimacy are the Heart of Artist's Decorating Style". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on 24 June 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2015– via Maya Gonzalez.com.
  17. ↑ Herrera-Sobek, Maria (2006). Chicano Folklore: A Handbook. Greenwood. pp.  216. ISBN   9780313333255.
  18. 1 2 3 Dewey, Charlsie (28 January 2015). "Queer Children's Book Author Gonzalez Creates Gender-Neutral Character". Windy City Times. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  19. ↑ "Maya Christina Gonzalez". Amazon.com. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  20. ↑ "Kid Lit and Ferguson - Maya Gonzalez". YouTube (Video). Kid Lit Equality. 16 September 2014. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  21. ↑ Dettmer, Lisa (2 June 2008). "Maya Gonzalez Interview for Women's Magazine on KPFA". YouTube (Video). Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  22. ↑ "Maya on: The Secrets in her Children's Books". YouTube (Video). Reflection Press. 3 May 2010. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  23. ↑ Schu (17 April 2015). "Author-Illustrator Maya Christina Gonzalez". Watch. Connect. Read. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  24. ↑ "Children's Book Press at 2008 Green Festival (with Maya Christina Gonzalez)". YouTube (Video). Children's Book Press. 2008. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  25. ↑ Sherry, Hoy (November 2009). "I Know the River Loves Me/Yo Sé Que El Río Me Ama". Library Media Connection. 28 (3): 98. ISSN   1542-4715 . Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  26. ↑ Gonzalez, Veronica (2014). "A Groundbreaking Book by Bay Area-Based Award Winning Chicana Children's Author and Illustrator Maya Christina Gonzalez". Latin Life. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  27. ↑ Weisman, Kay (15 December 2014). "Call Me Tree: Llámame árbol". Booklist. 111 (8): 55. ISSN   0006-7385 . Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  28. ↑ Friedman, Roberto (22 January 2015). "It's Malcolm McDowell's world". The Bay Area Reporter. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  29. ↑ "Call Me Tree". Kirkus Reviews. 82 (17): 89. 1 October 2014. ISSN   1948-7428.
  30. ↑ Santos, Maria (21 April 2015). "This "Gender Free" Children's Book Doesn't Use Gender Pronouns". Red Alert Politics. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  31. ↑ Hill, Corey (21 November 2012). "Grooming Your Future Activist". East Bay Express. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  32. ↑ Pitman, Gayle (11 May 2014). "The Gift of Writer's Block". The Active Voice. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  33. ↑ "2009 Americas Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature" (PDF). Consortium of Latin American Studies Programs. University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. 16 June 2009. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  34. ↑ "The Pura Belpre Award Winners, 1996-Present". Association for Library Service to Children. The American Library Association. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  35. ↑ "My Very Own Room: Mi Propio Cuartito Garners Rivera Award". Texas State University. 10 September 2001. Archived from the original on 24 June 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2015– via Maya Gonzalez.com.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.