Kalena Marshall Garcia
“good with a camera”

Projects
You Don’t Look Puerto Rican
COMPHET
Learning Solidarity 1 & 2
Arroz y no Gandules
Sustainable Printing
Video Work
Curation  
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Arroz y no Gandules


Arroz y no Gandules, 2022
Series 1, 2, & 3

Making food is something I grew up learning as a way to connect with my Puerto Rican culture. Whether that was cooking with my mamá or my titi's sending me home with tin trays full of arroz y gandules. Taking inspiration from Warhol’s Campbell’s soup can series to mimic the idea of production by making multiple prints of the cans. In recent years the Spanish company GOYA has had many problems with the Latine community. Though there are ties to the identity of many Latines as we are a mix of many cultures, one being Spanish, I want the viewer to acknowledge whether or not this is just a modern form of colonization. The company profits off of the culture contained in their packaged goods and many of the workers in their factories are Latine themselves. These GOYA products are often found in local tiendas in Latine neighborhoods owned by members of the community. The cans I used for the project are even from my local tienda. I mimicked the look of old GOYA can signs on the sides of bodegas that are worn out and bleached by the sun. I took something that is so beloved in the Latine community and posed the question of whether or not using their products really connects us to our indígena or afro culture. What does the buying of their products do to the Earth? Does the company give my community anything in return? What is our role as descendants of our ancestors? Are we strengthening or sabotaging our community by continuing this narrative? GOYA is posed as a large part of Latine identity, but at what cost?

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Arroz y no Gandules, Series 2
Diágolo 365: New Rhizomes
Fleisher Art Memorial, Philadelphia, PA