Martha Ramirez-Oropeza (born 1952) is a muralist, painter, theater performer, and researcher known for her work on the pre-Hispanic Nahuatl culture. [1]
Martha Ramirez-Oropeza was born in Delicias, Chihuahua, Mexico and her parents were migrant farmworkers. [2] Due to this, she continuously traveled from Delicias to Colusa, California. [2] She worked with her family in the fields picking prunes at a young age. [2] Her family eventually settled down in Pacoima which is a neighborhood in Los Angeles. [3] She experienced discrimination by a teacher that washed her mouth with soap after speaking Spanish when she was in second grade. [2] [3] [4] These experiences then lead her to partake in the Chicano Movement, a hunger strike for the United Farmworkers Union, creating anti-war posters, and planning and paintings murals. [2]
Ramirez-Oropeza pursued an education at California State University, Northridge. [3] [5] She received her Bachelor of Art from Antioch University in 2008. [5]
Ramirez-Oropeza co-founded the Universidad Nahuatl De Ocotepec, located in Ocotepec, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico. One motivation to co-found this university was resistance to the discrimination she and many have experienced. [6] She has been a coordinator for the university and was a professor teaching Nahuatl philosophy for 13 years. [5] [6] Her scholarly work and art continued in California at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and Social and Public Art Resource Center. [1] At UCLA, Ramirez-Oropeza teaches courses in Chicano/a Studies and Art. [7]
She is considered an expert on the Day of the Dead ritual because she has dedicated many years to research about it, despite not growing up with the tradition. [8] At SPARC, she is an Artist in Residence, and she partners with SPARC to lead the Day of the Dead Ritual yearly. [1] [8] [9]
She is also a performing arts teacher at Edison Language Elementary. [1]
Ramirez-Oropeza began drawing and creating art at a young age to escape her reality. [4] At the age of 18, she made the decision to move back to Mexico and develop her art. [4] In Mexico, she developed her skills under the guidance of muralist David Alfaro Siquieros. [4] In this apprenticeship, she collaborated with him on the mural Patricios y Patricidas. [4] Ramirez-Oropeza has also collaborated with Chicana muralist Judith Baca in a project titled The World Wall. [4]
Ramirez-Oropeza has painted a variety of murals in both the United States and Mexico. [1] In 2004, she was a recipient of an Award that was funded by the Durfee Foundation. [10]
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Martha Ramirez-Oropeza (born 1952) is a muralist, painter, theater performer, and researcher known for her work on the pre-Hispanic Nahuatl culture. [1]
Martha Ramirez-Oropeza was born in Delicias, Chihuahua, Mexico and her parents were migrant farmworkers. [2] Due to this, she continuously traveled from Delicias to Colusa, California. [2] She worked with her family in the fields picking prunes at a young age. [2] Her family eventually settled down in Pacoima which is a neighborhood in Los Angeles. [3] She experienced discrimination by a teacher that washed her mouth with soap after speaking Spanish when she was in second grade. [2] [3] [4] These experiences then lead her to partake in the Chicano Movement, a hunger strike for the United Farmworkers Union, creating anti-war posters, and planning and paintings murals. [2]
Ramirez-Oropeza pursued an education at California State University, Northridge. [3] [5] She received her Bachelor of Art from Antioch University in 2008. [5]
Ramirez-Oropeza co-founded the Universidad Nahuatl De Ocotepec, located in Ocotepec, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico. One motivation to co-found this university was resistance to the discrimination she and many have experienced. [6] She has been a coordinator for the university and was a professor teaching Nahuatl philosophy for 13 years. [5] [6] Her scholarly work and art continued in California at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and Social and Public Art Resource Center. [1] At UCLA, Ramirez-Oropeza teaches courses in Chicano/a Studies and Art. [7]
She is considered an expert on the Day of the Dead ritual because she has dedicated many years to research about it, despite not growing up with the tradition. [8] At SPARC, she is an Artist in Residence, and she partners with SPARC to lead the Day of the Dead Ritual yearly. [1] [8] [9]
She is also a performing arts teacher at Edison Language Elementary. [1]
Ramirez-Oropeza began drawing and creating art at a young age to escape her reality. [4] At the age of 18, she made the decision to move back to Mexico and develop her art. [4] In Mexico, she developed her skills under the guidance of muralist David Alfaro Siquieros. [4] In this apprenticeship, she collaborated with him on the mural Patricios y Patricidas. [4] Ramirez-Oropeza has also collaborated with Chicana muralist Judith Baca in a project titled The World Wall. [4]
Ramirez-Oropeza has painted a variety of murals in both the United States and Mexico. [1] In 2004, she was a recipient of an Award that was funded by the Durfee Foundation. [10]
{{
cite journal}}
: Cite journal requires |journal=
(
help)
{{
cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (
link)