Ma buhay

2021

gouache and acrylic on canvas, paper, a pothos plant, found objects

12 x 6" x 12"

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May you live.

 

Ramon Ochoa was my great grandfather who was brought to the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis. In this assemblage piece, I combine his portrait with elements that symbolize over 200 years of commerce that continue to move products and people around the world. The Ochoa journey begins in the early 1800's in the Aragon region of Spain, from where Ramon's father migrates to the Philippines with Tabacalera Incorporada. 

 

A living pothos plant grows inside a cigar box covered with the 1904 Philippine Exhibit brochure painted gold. The names of Ramon's descendants are written in the margins.

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Collection: Artifacts of Empire

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Intertextual

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Wicentowski, Danny, The World's Fair and the Lost Dead of St. Louis' Human Zoos, 2021.

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