Cultures Collide

The week always seems to go by so fast and I realize that I always seem to overthink the readings and what I will be creating! This week I decided to let my imagination run loose and create a piece that was based on what I understood from reading the chapter in the Octavio Paz reader. The reading was long and complex as usual but what I loved from Don Octavio is that he always seems to write about culture and how the Mexican and American culture collide with one another, never being exactly from one or the other and simply feeling rejected and ostracised. This rejection comes for us not feeling like we meeting the standards that each culture sets. Even though we are all human and so alike in everyway we are still yet so different. The Mexican culture had its ideals and standards and I know how harsh the members of its communities can be if you can not conform to specific expectations. The America culture is not so different in its way of thinking with its own set of ideals and standards. If you are to much like both then you are rejected and called a "Pocho" and basically looked down upon. Not Mexican yet not American so it becomes problematic for many of us, including myself. This is why I decided to create the piece you see pictured above. It is symbolic of two cultures colliding and merging or intertwining as one. I know that although I was raised with Mexican traditions, learned from my parents I also have a set of American traditions that I learned growing up and I feel to be very proud of both. They make me who I am and what I represent. People can call me "Pocho" if they want and can think I'm not American nor Mexican enough, but at the end of the day I know who I am and what I believe in. I see myself in my sculpture and it is beautiful in my eyes regardless of what others may think. Instead of complaining like I feel Don Octavio does in the reader I accept who and what I am and I play with the cards I was dealt. I am very proud of my traditions, culture and heritage both Mexican and American. I hope that this piece helps others see the beauty in our culture and traditions both Mexican and American! Enjoy!!!