Daily Lobo 09/11/23

l obo

EDITORIAL: A dystopian, all-American occurrence

By Maddie Pukite @Maddogpukite

Wednesday night, Froylan Villegas, an 11-year-old boy, died near campus outside of an Isotopes game — a dystopian, all-American occurrence.

I came back to Lobo Village, confronted by cop cars and a handful of “Are you safe?” texts from my roommates. Avenida Ceaser Chavez Rd. and University Blvd. are closed. Just before, student housing was put under lockdown by speakers blaring orders outside, my roomates said.

Yet the dinner is cooked, the music is played and my Wednesday evening continues. How disgustingly dystopian, I guess.

A year ago, the Daily Lobo covered the death of a University of New Mexico student who was shot outside the dorm halls on campus. I thought you only dealt with a tragedy like this, once, twice or thrice tops.

A week or so ago, I got photos of the Daily Tar’s front page after the tragic shooting at the University of North Carolina sent to me. How would the Daily Lobo cover death on our own doorsteps?

Tragedy has become shockingly

mundane. The music played so loud, you didn’t even hear the gunshots – a whisper of “You remember the number of shots fired last summer?” So you might not have thought anything of it anyway, until the orders from the sky command you to get off the streets and

take shelter. The parking lots were oddly full Wednesday night. Now, another story on the horrors of gun violence and its impact at a University – maybe this will finally spark action. I listened to my roommates relay their nights and where they were. Everyone lingers a

little longer together. Maybe we are still scared of the dark – too tired to sleep.

The Governor placed a 30-day ban on the transport of guns – a public health order. I have to say, I respect her guts. A quick, decisive action was given in response, but I wonder about the effectiveness.

The police are responsible for enforcing and guns are still strapped to their belts.

Violators could face civil penalties and a fine of $5,000 – a deterrent method, certainly, for those who can’t afford the $5,000. Who will the police choose to question?

The Bernalillo County Sheriff says they are wary of it altogether. The order increases overtime funding for state police in Albuquerque.

The statement the Governor made with the order is strong and clear against gun violence. However, deterrent methods only go so far. This only lasts 30 days. This needs to be followed up by a comprehensive long-term plan of action.

What that should be poses a complicated question. New Mexico’s political climate has long held a libertarian undercurrent. A long-term plan of action would have to be cognisant of this in order for it to be effective. The wide-sweeping public health order certainly conflicts with this.

Guns, ultimately, aren’t going anywhere. Leaving them exclusively in the hands of the police and security causes concern for me with the long history of police brutality, and

see Editorial page 2

Fatal shooting near South Campus

By Lauren Lifke @lauren_lifke

A road rage shooting near the University of New Mexico’s South Campus left a child dead on Wednesday evening, according to Albuquerque Police Chief Harold Medina. The incident prompted Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham to issue a 30-day prohibition of carrying guns on public property in Bernalillo County.

“They’re being used on 11-year-olds. They’re being used on 5-year-olds. This is the fifth example of road rage killing somebody in our city this year,” APD Director of Communications Gilbert Gallegos said in a media brief on Thursday.

An 11-year old boy was struck by gunfire and died, Medina said. The driver of the vehicle was also struck and in critical condition as of Thursday. APD said the suspects are still at large and detectives are searching for a Dodge Durango SRT in connection with the crime.

Officers at the University substation heard what they thought were shots being fired at 8:54 p.m. on Wednesday, Medina said.

“They couldn’t tell the direction of the shots, and about two minutes later, the calls started coming through dispatch,” Medina said in a media brief on Thursday morning.

Just over an hour after the first shots were heard, a LoboAlert informed UNM students of police activity at the intersection of Avenida Cesar Chavez Rd. and University Blvd. and advised them to avoid the area until further notice.

Security officers at Lobo Village, the student housing complex near The Pit, advised residents who were entering the apartment complex to lockdown shortly after the incident.

Resident Director of the American Campus Communities proporties Marcus Romero said that heightened security levels and onsite security officer coverage remain in place at Lobo Village.

“While this incident did not occur at Lobo Village or involve its resi-

Inside this Lobo

Cárdenas: LETTER: Police presence a nuisance now, dangerous later (pg. 2)

Huffman: PHOTO STORY: ‘topes take on Reno Reno beats Isotopes 8-6 (pg. 5)

Schwartz: PHOTO STORY: Football season kicks off (pg. 4)

dents, the police did a sweep of the community out of an abundance of caution,” Romero said.

A second LoboAlert notified students that APD had cleared the scene and roadways were open on Thursday at about 8 a.m.

UNM Police Department Lieutenant Larry Bitsoih said that APD is the lead agency in the case and declined comment on behalf of UNMPD.

Caroline Heller, a student from the Netherlands, has been in New Mexico for just four weeks and noted the contrast in gun violence between the two places.

“People say it’s dangerous and there’s a lot of shooting,” Heller said, adding that it was harder to conceptualize the extent of the issue before arriving here.

The fact that the victim was a child made the situation feel scarier.

“It’s random and so unnecessary,” Heller said.

Gun violence against children prompted Gov. Lujan Grisham to take action. The incident caused a state and nationwide stir after

she declared gun violence a public health emergency on Thursday. She also announced an enforcement plan for gun violence on Friday, which includes a 30-day suspension of concealed and open carry laws in Albuquerque and Bernalillo County.

“When New Mexicans are afraid to be in crowds, to take their kids to school, to leave a baseball game

with The Power of

– when their very right to exist is threatened by the prospect of violence at every turn – something is very wrong,” she said.

Lauren Lifke is a freelance reporter at the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at news@dailylobo. com or on Twitter: @lauren_lifke

Bugler: New look for offence wins their first game of the season (pg. 4)

Alexander: Hindsight Insight 3.0: excitement in collaboration

New UNM art museum exhibition unveiled (pg. 6)

Key: Land, Body and Archive highlights student work (pg. 7)

Pukite: The feminine is devastatingly colorful (pg. 8)

Pukite: PHOTO STORY: People of Art Walk (pg. 10)

Maddie Pukite / @maddogpukite / Daily Lobo

Police gather outside of Lobo Village on Wednesday, Sept. 13 following the shooting that resulted in the death of an 11-year-old boy.

John Scott / Daily Lobo / @JohnSnott

The front entrance to Lobo Village, a UNM housing complex located on South Campus, the afternoon of Thursday, June 30 2022.

Letter to the Editor: Police presence a nuisance now, dangerous later

I was reading my book by the Duck Pond on Thursday morning when I felt the ground start to shake. I was startled at first, and when I glanced up, there were two massive black horses walking two feet in front of me, mounted by a pair of Albuquerque Police Officers. I wasn’t the only one there reading or trying to relax, and I said something.

“I’m trying to read here.”

“What? You can’t read?” the female officer asked.

Now, I have a Masters degree and I hadn’t had any coffee that morning, so this is what I really wanted

to say: “Look, I’m glad you’re having fun playing cowboys, but some of us are here trying to learn. If you can read, read the room.”

Instead, since I have a healthy fear of armed people (“good” or otherwise), I just said, “Rude,” and the horses passed by. The officers posted up on a hill nearby. They were there for about 10 minutes talking and glancing back at me – a guy in the grass with a book –before they finally went around the Duck Pond and toward Smith Plaza.

Letting them know I was annoyed by their behavior certainly isn’t a crime, nor is being annoying a crime. But the way I was treated first as an obstacle to (barely) avoid,

and second as a target of suspicion, isn’t what I was expecting when I came onto campus to read a book.

Why do we need mounted Albuquerque Police Department officers on a university campus that already has a police force? I understand that the rate of school (and other mass) shootings is outrageously high right now – a tragedy that is unfortunately all too common in America. I, like many others, feel uncomfortable going to places with crowds or loud noises, and one might think that some “good guys with guns” would be able to keep us safe. While more Univeristy of New Mexico Police Department officers have been hired, these officers

routinely train with APD — a department that “engages in a pattern or practice of use of excessive force, including deadly force, in violation of the Fourth Amendment,” according to a 2014 Department of Justice investigation.

For all of this “training,” UNMPD still has a notoriously slow response time (when they respond to calls at all), has helped to cover-up sexual assaults, shared racist videos and instead of something being done about safety, we have UNMPD driving cruisers through campus where students, teachers, staff, families, children, dogs and ducks are walking, studying, playing and trying to enjoy themselves safely.

UNM has a police problem. But UNM also has a long history of student resistance and protest with NMSP brutalizing student protestors just last year. Could this be why we have such a large police force for our relatively small student population. Whatever the reason, if students continue to allow a useless and intimidating police presence on campus, how long will it be before our student fees are paying for the mace in our faces – the nightsticks in our ribs?

Victoriano Cárdenas

Alum (2014 & 2020)

Jessica Baca / @Jessica_Baca_ / Daily Lobo

UNM welcome back week has Officer Griego with horse Edgar visiting students Thursday, August 24

By Victoriano Cárdenas

Alex McCausland/ @alexkmccausland/ Daily Lobo

The Daily Lobo welcomes letters to the editor from any point of view.

Editorial from page 1

the Albuquerque Police Department is one of the most lethal in the nation.

The community is grieving. People have died – a child died. A ban on guns seems like the logical solution. Guns are the issue. But what the community needs is support.

In order to increase public safety, the state needs to have initiatives that are centered in humanity. Support should consist of increased funding for education, more accessibility to mental health resources, gun safety training, affordable housing and support for those unhoused. A response centered on de-

terrence that angers many isn’t the solution. In order to solve this issue, there needs to be a focus on the collective. The Gov. made a statement that shows she wants to take action; now she needs to act in a way that has the support of the community behind her and addresses the systemic issues that lead to gun violence.

Who are the protectors we’ll choose to remain armed, and who will they choose to target? Who has already died? The grief shakes you awake – confused because you don’t know who, when, where, what, why, how, you just hear the

echo of the shots made. The echoes that made you lose sleep.

A child is dead. Almost a thousand university students heard.

Maddie Pukite is the editor-inchief at the Daily Lobo. They can be contacted at editorinchief@dailylobo.com on Twitter @maddogpukite

SOCCER: UNM vs NMSU

Mackenzie Schwartz / @artkenzie / Daily Lobo

Lobos get prepared to play against New Mexico State University at UNM Soccer Field and Track on Sunday, Sept. 10.

Mackenzie Schwartz / @artkenzie / Daily Lobo

Lobos goalie, Alli Davis, stops a goal from scoring against New Mexico State University at UNM Soccer Field and Track on Sunday, Sept. 10.

Football season kicks off

New look for offense wins their first game of the season

By Thomas Bulger @ thomasbulger10

The University of New Mexico’s football team defeated the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles 56-10. It was the home debut of the new offense led by Bryant Vincent at offensive coordinator and Dylan Hopkins at quarterback – both transfers from the University of Alabama, Birmingham.

The Golden Eagles play in the Ohio Valley Conference in Football Conference Subdivision. They haven’t had a winning season since 2011. There were 17,279 fans in attendance, which is the most in a home opener since 2018.

The Lobos offense was able to run and throw the ball efficiently, earning 296 rushing yards and 291 passing yards.

Of those rushing yards, 162 came

from Jacory Croskey-Merritt who averaged 13.5 yards on 12 carries. He also scored three touchdowns on a 48, 1 and 55 yard run.

After the game, Croskey-Merritt was asked how he felt about his performance and he credited the offensive line but is already looking ahead to the next game.

‘‘It feels amazing. I want to thank the guy up front and I’m just looking forward to winning a lot more,’’ Croskey-Merritt said.

UNM had four touchdown passes to four different receivers in the game; they already passed their 2022 season where they scored three passing touchdowns total last year – a good sign for the offense.

Those four passing touchdowns from Hopkins are tied for the second most in school history. In the game he went 13-17 with one interception.

After the game, Hopkins also credited the offensive line and was pleased with the entire offense’s performance.

Volume 128

Issue 5

‘‘I feel really good about tonight’s game. That time I threw Luke that touchdown, I could have sat back there all day,’’ Hopkins said. ”Leaving the game, (I felt) really proud of what we did out front.”

Luke Drzewiecki went a perfect 8 for 8 on extra points in the game, beating his perfect 6 for 6 for the entirety of last season.

The Lobos 21 third quarter points passed their 2022 campaign last season where they scored 19 points in all third quarters combined.

The defense also had a good outing; they forced two fumbles in the game. After giving up a touchdown early, they locked in the second half, only giving up 76 yards.

Syaire Riley led the team in tackles with 8. Afterwards, he said that this game gives the team something to build off of.

‘‘We haven’t been our best version of ourselves, so coming out tonight with all the transfers that

Editor-in-Chief Madeline Pukite

Design Director Katrina Estrada

we have — all the new coaches — we wanted to show that this year is going to be different … It was nice for us to put all the points on the board to show all the fans in the state that we’re the flagship university in this state, and it’s going to stay that way,’’ Riley said.

Head coach Danny Gonzalez started his post game press conference by explaining the turquoise on the coach’s hats and on the players’ socks.

‘‘In our community, the Native American culture and Indigenous people are a big deal, and representing any kind of honor we can to them is a big emphasis,’’ Gonzalez said.

Gonzales then went on to talk about the team’s culture this season.

‘‘These guys work 43 out of the 52 weeks in the year for 12 guaranteed opportunities. The lack of success that we’ve had around here – obviously our attitude and our guys’ attitude listening to Bill, and Sy, and

Sports Editor Thomas

Dylan and all those guys talk – their belief is different, which gives us the opportunity to be a competitive and good team.”

The team is ready to take on a greater challenge with everyone in their press conference, alluding to next week where they are taking on New Mexico State on Sept. 16 in Albuquerque. NMSU will be coming off of a 33-17 loss to Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia.

Thomas Bulger is the sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He can be contacted at sports@dailylobo. com or on Twitter @thomasbulger10

Editorial Staff Telephone: (505) 277-7527

Fax: (505) 277-7530

news@dailylobo.com www.dailylobo.com

Photo Editor Jessica Baca

The New Mexico Daily Lobo is an independent student newspaper published on Monday except school holidays during the fall and spring semesters. Subscription rate is $75 per academic year. E-mail accounting@dailylobo.com for more information on subscriptions.

The New Mexico Daily Lobo is published by the Board of UNM Student Publications. The editorial opinions expressed in the New Mexico Daily Lobo are those of the respective writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the students, faculty, staff and regents of the University of New Mexico. Inquiries concerning editorial content should be made to the editor-in-chief.

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Letter submission policy: The opinions expressed are those of the authors alone. Letters and guest columns must be concisely written, signed by the author and include address and telephone. No names will be withheld.

UNM Land Acknowledgement statement

Founded in 1889, the University of New Mexico sits on the traditional homelands of the Pueblo of Sandia. The original peoples of New Mexico – Pueblo, Navajo, and Apache – since time immemorial, have deep connections to the land and have made significant contributions to the broader community statewide. We honor the land itself and those who remain stewards of this land throughout the generations and also acknowledge our committed relationship to Indigenous peoples. We gratefully recognize our history. This statement was developed by Pam Agoyo, director of American Indian Student Services and special assistant to the president on American Indian Affairs, in consultation with the Native American Faculty Council.

/ @artkenzie / Daily Lobo UNM students cheer on the Lobos against Tennessee Tech University at University Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 9.

Mackenzie Schwartz / @artkenzie / Daily Lobo UNM Students cheer on the Lobos against Tennessee Tech University at University Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 9.

Mackenzie Schwartz / @artkenzie / Daily Lobo Lobos running back, Jacory Croskey-Merritt, makes his first touchdown of the night against Tennessee Tech University at University Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 9.

Mackenzie Schwartz / @artkenzie / Daily Lobo Lobos center back, Zach Morris, takes down Tennessee Tech University defender at University Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 9.

Hindsight Insight 3.0: excitement in collaboration

New UNM Art Museum exhibition unveiled

By Lily Alexander @

Over the summer, Mary Statzer and Angel Jiang – curators at the University of New Mexico’s Art Museum – asked three professors to choose works for an exhibit that would connect with their syllabuses.

Ray Hernández-Durán, who teaches Chicano & Latinx art, pulled pieces by Chicano and Latinx artists. Kevin Mulhearn, who teaches the history of photography, pulled abstract and portraiture photography from various time periods, Jiang said.

The UNM Art Museum unveiled its latest exhibition, “Hindsight Insight 3.0: Portraits, Landscapes, and Abstraction” on Friday, Sept. 6.

The exhibition features art from the museum’s permanent collection, as well as pieces by artist and

UNM assistant professor of Painting & Drawing, Amanda Curreri.

Featured alongside Curreri works are selections by curators Jiang and Statzer, as well as Hernández-Durán and Mulhearn.

“Hindsight Insight 3.0” is the second in a series that is centered around collaboration and experimentation that began last spring, Statzer said.

“We’re lucky that we have this amazing collection on campus,” Mulhearn said. “So we’re trying to take advantage of that.”

When surveying the museum’s collection, Curreri noticed a gap in art relating to curriculum on Queer activism. Statzer then decided to incorporate Curreri’s own pieces in turn.

“By including Curreri’s work, it’s sort of this provisional stop-gap measure,” Statzer said. “Imagining a future where we have more Queer activist art.”

Curreri’s part in “Hindsight Insight 3.0” features textiles in many forms: bobbins, rope and ponchos. One piece titled, “We Cannot Live on Clams Alone,” depicts shells hanging from a checkered background. The piece was inspired by a protest that took place in the 1920s in Plymouth, Massachusetts, as well as from Curreri’s own mussel dinners.

“Just trying to jam that social aspect into the material of the work – not making the mussels but having them be a byproduct of the social,” Curreri said. “And it turns out, they’re kind of pretty.”

Students being able to see the art in-person is an important aspect of “Hindsight Insight 3.0,” according to Hernández-Durán, Mulhearn and Statzer.

“I think being in the presence of objects is a lot like being in the presence of people,” Statzer said. “Objects have a physical presence that affects you, and often that can

be greatly enhanced – much more than an image of something.”

Curreri’s students will remove one of the rope pieces from the museum biweekly and work with it. The piece originally began on a bridge over the Ohio River – a place that served as the division between the North and South during the Civil War. It was created with community organizers, artists and other collaborators, alongside conversations about race.

“We spanned the bridge making ropes – symbolic action of our difference in togetherness — so trying to see if this material can be reactivated, have meaning, carry that meaning in a new way here,” Curreri said.

Hernández-Durán’s students will write papers on the works that will be shared with the Art Museum, he said.

“My students are going to do research anyway,” Hernández-Durán said. “But instead of doing research

“We Cannot Live on Clams Alone” by Amanda Curreri stands in the “Hindsight Insight 3.0” exhibition on Sept. 7. Mediums include mussel shells, wooden dowel rods, thread, flagpole mounts and vinyl photomural.

on something they find online or see in a book, they can actually go to the gallery and see the object and produce work that’s going to help the museum.”

The “Hindsight Insight” series will have two more iterations following 3.0. The themes of these exhibitions remain ambiguous for now, Statzer said, but they will also involve student participation.

“What would make me feel best about this show is feeling like students are engaging on all different levels,” Statzer said before the opening. “Whether they’re in the classes with the professors we’ve collaborated with or just walking int o the museum.”

Lily Alexander is a beat reporter at the Daily Lobo. She can be contacted at sports@dailylobo. com or on Twitter @llilyalexander

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Lily Alexander/Daily Lobo/ @llilyalexander

“Elizabeth ‘Pink Panther’ Monge, Farmington, NM, from ‘Women Boxers: The New Warriors’” by Delilah Montoya depicted at the “Hindsight Insight 3.0” opening on Sept. 7. It is a new piece in University of New Mexico Art Museum’s permanent collection.

Lily Alexander/Daily Lobo/ @llilyalexander

Land, Body and Archive highlights student work

By Addison Key @addisonkey11

There is a deep history of collaboration between students in the Southwest, specifically in the photo medium, Anna Rotty said. The Southwest Photo Collaborative is a group of graduate students from the University of New Mexico, Arizona State University and the University of Arizona.

Rotty – a third-year graduate student studying photography – worked with a small group of students to create and curate an art show titled, “Land, Body and Archive” in the John Sommers Gallery with an opening reception on Friday, Sept. 10.

The words “Land, Body and Archive” refer to the similar themes that each student in the collective

work with in their photography, Emma Ressel said – a second-year graduate student at UNM. While curating the show, the students thought about how each individual piece and the exhibition as a whole tied back to these themes.

Rotty’s piece showcased the utilization of the light reflection and dirt from the Rio Grande to create an “underwater” effect. The aspects of the pieces are not hung at eye level, inviting the viewer to interact with it, Rotty said.

“I really want someone to be able to look up at it from underneath and have this essence of being below the surface of water, or (to) disorient our position in a human eye-level perspective. … I call it “Nothing without each other” because I’m thinking about ‘What is a river without water?’ These elements are

essential to coexisting together for life,” Rotty said.

The collaborative met on Zoom for over a year to share and critique each other’s work, Rotty said. Participating in the Southwest Photo Collaborative, Ressel said, is not required of the UNM photo students, but instead is an effort led by the photo students to build community.

“It was totally optional for anybody to get involved if they wanted to. It definitely doesn’t feel like anything that our faculty is expecting us to do. It feels very much motivated by the MFA students at these three schools – wanting to deepen the community and the region,” Ressel said.

Rotty manages the John Sommers Gallery as part of her assistantship at UNM. This show is one of the first times students from outside the University have been invited to

show their work, she said.

“It’s very much a community student-space as a priority. This is probably the first time that I’ve been here that there’s been anyone from outside of UNM, but in this context, it’s about collaboration … So we’ve invited them,” Rotty said.

The exhibit at UNM is the first iteration of a three-part show. Preceding students from UOFA and ASU will take on organizing the exhibition at their schools.

The Southwest Photo Collaborative, Ressel said, has allowed her to become more involved with the photographers in the broader Southwest community. This sparked a continued interest to work and follow photographers in the region.

“I feel much more aware of what other photographers around me are thinking about, and it makes me feel

like I’m not working in a vacuum –that there is this communal energy around working in this region,” Ressel said.

Working with the collective has allowed Ressel to become more confident in her work and ability to create opportunities for herself.

“We can create our own opportunities to put work on the wall, connect with each other; we don’t have to wait until we graduate or until we’re invited by an outside entity to get together and work on something, or make something that we’re excited about,” Ressel said.

Addison Key is a senior reporter at the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at culture@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @addisonkey11

Ella Daniel/ @ella_daniel7/ Daily Lobo

Nicholas Valdés’ “how my father showed generational love” – an intricate textured photograph is seen on display as a part of “Land, Body and Archive” on Friday Sep. 8 in John Sommers Gallery.

Ella Daniel/ @ella_daniel7/Daily Lobo

Claudia Hermano’s “after torso” – a three-dimension photographic piece involving photo fabric seen on display as a part of “Land, Body and Archive” at John Sommers Gallery on Friday, Sept. 8.

The feminine is devastatingly colorful

By Maddie Pukite @maddogpukite

A bright, colorful booth layered with paintings of women and feminine expression, Makayla Baca and Emily Garcia sold both their individual and collaborative artwork pieces at the Art Walk on Friday night.

The pair met during a fair at The Cat and the Cobra tattoo shop where they were both selling artwork and discovered the similar themes of femininity across both their work.

The representations of deities that Baca creates with her artistic lens are in an effort to design an alternative to the common depiction of female deities portrayed under the male gaze.

“A lot of women are expressed as beautiful, goddess-like or (with) serene (qualities). If it’s a male (artist), you have it over-sexualized a little bit. So I think it’s important to show my women crying, or going through tragedy and very inspired by them looking like goddesses too,” Baca said.

Baca’s work deals with the relationship she has with her own mother and dysfunctional dynamics in families – dealing with both the tragedy and beauty of it.

“I have a piece where I have a doll house on top of the head. (In it), I explore a dysfunctional household, but also find beauty in that. A lot of people see my stuff and think it’s demonic, but it’s good to celebrate women and also see the beauty in a woman who’s not smiling,’’ Baca said. ‘‘We carry a lot of stuff with us inherently as women. Sometimes

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we’re not all smiley and we’re still beautiful no matter what.’’

Garica’s work explores femininity in relation to the whimsical and magical as a form of escapism.

“It’s almost an escape into this magical world. I’ve been getting a little bit more into doing landscapes and recently (I) did a lady coming out of a retro TV, so she has her curly hair coming out and it’s a little bit magical,” Garcia said.

Priorly, more of Garcia’s work focused on gas masks and cyberpunk art. The shift to bright, colorful work brought acceptance of self and a new path, she said.

“I drew this astronaut, but just the big head of an astronaut, and then she has a galaxy, fish and is full of detail. I bedazzled it and just really enjoyed it, and it was me putting (myself) out there. I don’t want to work anymore. I want to have fun and do this, so I just

did that,” Garcia said.

Both Garcia’s and Baca’s work relate to their own experiences with femininity and finding different themes to convey how perception and reality can relate.

“My subject matter is strongly influenced by color and I really enjoy the female form. I like how soft and delicate it is, and to explore themes of fantasy and going into a different world – (to explore how) those themes of fantasy relate to the feminine,” Garcia said.

Sharing her work, Baca said she hopes others can relate and take away themes she works with to relate back to their own life.

“I want people to … (take their own) lived experiences and find the beauty in that. Sometimes it’s hidden away and people don’t want to talk about it. When it’s put into a different light where it’s a deity that’s

worshiped, then it can speak to them as well in that way,” Baca said. Since working together, both said they have strongly influenced each other with one another’s acrylic and digital work.

“I think we really click, and whenever we have any ideas, we’re very open with each other and we talk through the motions of things,” Baca said.

Maddie Pukite is the editor-inchief at the Daily Lobo. They can be contacted at editorinchief@dailylobo.com on Twitter @maddogpukite

Maddie Pukite / @maddogpukite / Daily Lobo Makayla Baca and Emily Garcia pose outside of OT Circus at Art Walk on Friday, Sept. 8. They both use acrylic paint and create art with themes of femininity and womanhood.

Courtesy Photo

Artwork by Emily Garcia, she can be found on Instagram @lemony.artt.

Courtesy Photo

Artwork by Makayla Baca, she can be found on Instagram @onigrrrrl.

The Entertainment Guide

By Christopher Tran