Work by J. Leigh Garcia

J. Leigh Garcia (she/her) is an artist born and raised in Dallas, TX. Garcia received her MFA and MA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and BFA from the University of North Texas. She has received numerous awards for her work including the Emerging Printmaker Award from Southern Graphics Council International (SGCI), New Faculty Outstanding Research and Scholarship Award from Kent State University, Gamblin Emerging Artist Award, and Arts Institute Sinaiko Frank Graduate Fellowship for a Woman in the Arts. Her work is included in over 15 permanent collections including the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH; Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, Madison, WI; National Museum of Mexican Art, Chicago, IL; Mexic-Arte Museum, Austin, TX; Zuckerman Museum of Art, Kennesaw, GA; and Ulrich Museum of Art, Wichita State University.

Following the roots of her own ancestry, Garcia uses printmaking, papermaking, and sculpture to explore themes of racial and generational privilege/oppression within Mexican-American populations in Texas. As a biracial Latina, a seventh-generation Texan of European descent on my mom’s side and granddaughter of Mexican immigrants on my dad’s, I have followed the roots of my own ancestry to shape my artistic practice. Major events in Texas history such as the Mexican-American War, Battle of the Alamo, Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, and Bracero Program have created a complex relationship between my two cultures: white Texans and mestizo Mexicans. Products of these historical events—particularly undocumented immigration and the racialization of Mexicans—are both the context and focus of my work. Using printmaking, papermaking, and sculpture, I explore my biracial identity and familial history while highlighting aspects of racial and generational privilege/oppression.