-
Gisela Rosario Ramos
-
2018
Grant Summary
Fellowship.
Keywords
Artist Statement
My work is born out of my body. I created a non-existent image in pop culture: Macha Colón. Theater, pop music, fashion, drag, and post-modern dance, in a Caribbean, feminist and Afro-centric flavor consciousness, all in one body. Macha is everything popular culture establishment is afraid of—a fat woman on stage showing her skin, moving with aplomb, sexiness and humor, singing (and screaming) about rapturous experiences with catchy phrases that everyone wants to sing along to. Macha walks a thin line that celebrates sex and personal freedom, without taking itself too seriously. Aware of my own fears, I question the standards of beauty - even the ones that I myself hold. I’ve turned them into a challenge to show my cellulite-filled thighs, double chin, back’s love handles, and facial hair. My work celebrates imperfection’s beauty and explores the same view towards other queer bodies in my film work. All of my artistic practice is anchored in a political project towards emancipation.