Chican@ Printmaking in Los Angeles : The Role of the Arts in Empowerment, Access, and Community

Abstract

The artistic medium of printmaking has been used for centuries beyond the sheer pleasure of aestheticism, in order to help foster political, social, and propagandistic messages. While making prints for the sake of activism has arisen out of times of hardship, injustice, and crisis, the genre of printmaking as a social justice art form still strongly resonates in our present day Chicano community. This paper takes a critical look at how art has played its role in various acts of activism throughout history, as well as the significance of the medium of printmaking as a transformer of space. I also explore the resonances of printmaking that still remain in Los Angeles's Chicano community today, through an examination and reflection upon my time spent at Self Help Graphics & Art in East Los Angeles.