Blog 1: Artist Statement & Statement of Resistance


Artist Statement
     Education has always been a big deal to me. Coming from a family of athletes, I never felt like I had much in common with anyone. When all my cousins had baseball games over the weekend, I would be laying on the couch reading a book. School was the only place where I felt like I was good at something. I was excelling in all my classes so much so that school became my new identity. Everything I did and accomplished was attributed to how “smart” I was and after a while it became what was expected of me. Regardless of whatever was going on in my life, school was always my constant.
     When I was in high school my US History textbook dedicated one paragraph to Guam. It said that we were occupied by the Japanese during World War II and then liberated by the United States. Were they wrong? No. But what my high school US History textbook failed to mention was the number of lives lost during those years of occupation. The forced assimilation of Chamorro families into Japanese traditions and practices. My history textbook did not tell us about the massacres and marches, we learned that from our grandparents. As a descendant of a people whose stories have been erased from history, I am still trying to find my voice as an artist. This struggle to know who I am as a person and where I come from is a huge inspiration to my art.
     During my time in Ireland I want to know what the conversation is like around the history here. What facts or lessons are deemed “valuable enough” to be taught in a school setting? Is the acquisition of knowledge more important than memorizing and spitting out information? A project that I think would be interesting in the context of these questions would be to hear from the different perspectives that make up this culture and how their education experience has shaped the way they perceive the world.
     Speaking from personal experience, the best art that I have ever interacted with was art that made me feel less alone in the world. It is my hope that through my art, audiences feel understood and heard. By going on this journey with me, I hope that my audience comes to realize that they too  have a voice, even if it is not always heard. I am inspired to do this work because of my evolving relationship with academia. What was once a sort of haven has turned into a source of anxiety and insecurity. Where I once felt safe and engaged, I now feel doubt. I want to shift the lens from the dominant narrative that we have been fed all our lives and focus on the stories that have not been given the appropriate amount of credit.


Statement of Resistance
I believe that education can save lives. I also believe that it is important for history to be told from all points of view. This project aims to interrogate the status quo by resisting the erasure of voices and stories from historical narratives as well as recognizing that any type of change takes time and it is only through perseverance and determination that this change will happen. As someone who hasn’t always felt like she had a place or voice in society, I acknowledge that finding one’s voice is a journey in and of itself, and it is my hope that this project offers a space where vulnerabilities can be shared and skills can be fostered in order for other voices to come to fruition.

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