Borderlandia: The Art and Language of Chicanos as Exemplified in Enrique Chagoya’s Work
Location
PANEL: Constructing & Navigating Identity
CELA A019
Moderator: Gabby Valentine
Document Type
Presentation - Oberlin Community Only
Start Date
4-25-2025 4:00 PM
End Date
4-25-2025 5:00 PM
Abstract
Mickey Mouse’s giant gloved hand hovers, poised to flick away a frightened young brown girl. In another piece, a Mexica-inspired deity stands face-to-face with the iconic Superman, dressed in recognizable pilgrim attire. These striking images are part of Enrique Chagoya’s Borderlandia exhibit. In Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza, Gloria Anzaldúa highlights the Chicano as a transformer of the Borderlands. Similarly, I explore the Chicano identity as a transformative force within the liminal space of Borderlandia. Because I was not introduced to English during my early developmental years, I—like many others—naturally blended my native language with English. However, I came to understand how this fusion, Spanglish, was denigrated—dismissed as “too ghetto,” uneducated, and a marker of poverty. My research examines how Spanglish and interconnected themes like Rasquachismo are visually represented in Chagoya’s work. Through his portrayal of Spanglish and the Borderlands, Chagoya juxtaposes symbols and imagery from both Mexican and American cultures, highlighting the multifaceted ways Chicanos navigate, express, and construct their identities. In this presentation, I analyze Chagoya’s accordion-style codex, drawing connections between Rasquachismo, Spanglish, and Anzaldúa’s theories. Through this exploration, I demonstrate how art and language function as powerful forms of resistance within the Borderlands, shaping and reclaiming Chicano cultural identity.
Keywords:
Spanglish, Visual Art, Chicanos, Resistance
Recommended Citation
Muñoz, Lluvia, "Borderlandia: The Art and Language of Chicanos as Exemplified in Enrique Chagoya’s Work" (2025). Research Symposium. 23.
https://digitalcommons.oberlin.edu/researchsymp/2025/presentations/23
Major
Hispanic Studies
Comparative American Studies
Award
Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship
Project Mentor(s)
Ana Christina Perry, Modern & Contemporary Art History and Comparative American Studies
2025
Borderlandia: The Art and Language of Chicanos as Exemplified in Enrique Chagoya’s Work
PANEL: Constructing & Navigating Identity
CELA A019
Moderator: Gabby Valentine
Mickey Mouse’s giant gloved hand hovers, poised to flick away a frightened young brown girl. In another piece, a Mexica-inspired deity stands face-to-face with the iconic Superman, dressed in recognizable pilgrim attire. These striking images are part of Enrique Chagoya’s Borderlandia exhibit. In Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza, Gloria Anzaldúa highlights the Chicano as a transformer of the Borderlands. Similarly, I explore the Chicano identity as a transformative force within the liminal space of Borderlandia. Because I was not introduced to English during my early developmental years, I—like many others—naturally blended my native language with English. However, I came to understand how this fusion, Spanglish, was denigrated—dismissed as “too ghetto,” uneducated, and a marker of poverty. My research examines how Spanglish and interconnected themes like Rasquachismo are visually represented in Chagoya’s work. Through his portrayal of Spanglish and the Borderlands, Chagoya juxtaposes symbols and imagery from both Mexican and American cultures, highlighting the multifaceted ways Chicanos navigate, express, and construct their identities. In this presentation, I analyze Chagoya’s accordion-style codex, drawing connections between Rasquachismo, Spanglish, and Anzaldúa’s theories. Through this exploration, I demonstrate how art and language function as powerful forms of resistance within the Borderlands, shaping and reclaiming Chicano cultural identity.
