In the midst of the unprecedented events that have unfolded this year, it is refreshing to put aside the chaos and shift our energies toward more sensory and soothing subjects. What better way to do this than celebrating culture from south of the border: Chicano art. 

Two weeks ago, I had the opportunity to chat with an artist from El Paso, Texas. From the moment she spoke, I knew her energetic vibes and vivacious nature would be just as entrancing as her art.

Meet Eugenia Carmona.

Carmona was raised in El Paso, but her parents immigrated to Texas from Juarez, Mexico, for work. She is a first-generation American, raised with traditional Catholic values. Her two brothers are engineers, and Eugenia is the only artist in the family. Her passion for dancing and her education led to a love of the arts, stemming from unique Mexican folkloric dancing. 

Liz: What motivates you to paint?

Eugenia: Nature, dance, culture. It’s something that brings a lot of peace and love in my life or sometimes just comfort, too. Learning about colors and nature inspires my work. I danced folklorico Mexicano for 10 years, so that was actually my first love in the art world. I feel like that’s the reason I’m so attached to fabric, to color and to energy. I truly believe that in some sense it’s guided with that energy.

Liz: Being a Chicana artist, how do you navigate and project your art in the art world?

Eugenia: For me it’s never been an easy ride because, as an artist, you still have to search and learn and fall and come up again, just like in any other career. It’s not easy, but my mindset is programmed to overcome challenges. I tried to get into a position where I have a proper education so that I can communicate to a variety of people, but also I consider myself humble in the sense of, I can be in the barrio, too. I can be painting walls up there, too, and feel comfortable there and feel comfortable in my skin, being around people of all different positions, economic positions and cultural positions. For me, that’s always been something that I absolutely love about my work; I get to be a chameleon, I get to dress the part, wherever I go, and experience the world through peoples’ cultures and lives. That’s why my work is more based on cultural textiles. 

Liz: Explain how cultural textiles are used in your art. 

Eugenia: Different regions in the world utilize textiles and art in their culture to identify themselves. Basically like an I.D. This stems from indigenous communities, where they say, “Hey, this person is not from our tribe, he doesn’t dress like us,” or, “This person is not from our region, he doesn’t dress like us, he must be from the south or the east.” This is something that stems a lot from my culture, too. That’s what really inspires me. I just love culture. I’m in love with it. I do work with different materials just like that. I paint murals, I paint canvases, use acrylics. It definitely has its sense of culture.

Liz: In what ways does your artistic expression differ from other artists?

Eugenia: I want my work to feel very cultural and very energetic. I want people to be energized and inspired. I do not use my own work to heal my problems because I know that a lot of artists, who are sensitive enough, relieve their stress or relieve their problems in their work. I do not use my work as medicine for myself. I create work that is dynamic and energetic enough to move other people into that space. I don’t want to project my pain; therefore, I use other methods, like journaling and prayer, to harness my own spiritual needs, in order for me to give the world something, because this is how I give to the world, by visuals. I try to use my work as something that can inspire and give people energy and make people happy. There’s already so much craziness in the world. A little color always gives a sense of strength and love.