An interview of Enrique Chagoya conducted July 25-August 6, by Paul Karlstrom, for the Archives of American Art.
The interview takes place at Chagoya's home in South San Francisco (sessions 1,2) and at Karlstrom's San Francisco office (session 3). Chagoya's wife, Kara Maria, joins in for the final portion of the interview. Chagoya discusses activities in Mexico and the U.S.; his involvement with the Galeria de la Raza and the Chicano Movement; his work, including books that are based on Pre-Columbian codices; his application of "reverse anthropology," the history of the Americas and Europe, as if Mexico conquered Europe; Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera; the legacy of Mexican muralism and the union of art and ideology; the nature of his own interest in Pre-Columbian imagery; his sabbatical year in Paris; collaborations with his wife Kara Maria, including issues of self-projection into works of art; artistic responsibility; creation of hybrid cultures; the separation of his art from other Chicano art; and identity as a Mexican. Chagoya's wife, painter Kara Maria, discusses her training at UC Berkeley, meeting Chagoya; their evolving relationship as artists; his role as mentor; and her separate artistic identity.
Biographical / Historical:
Enrique Chagoya (1953-) is a Mexican born American painter, graphic artist, and educator in San Francisco, California. Kara Maria (1968-) is Chagoya's wife.
General:
Originally recorded on 7 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 13 digital wav files. Duration is 6 hr., 43 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Topic:
Painters -- California -- San Francisco -- Interviews Search this
Printmakers -- California -- San Francisco -- Interviews Search this
