My Shadow Box
By:Wendy Perez Govea
This Shadow Box represents my counter narrative of my own chosen identity. When people look at me, they see the dominant narratives you hear people say like because I am Mexican I’m an immigrant or I shouldn’t be here in the US. Many people assume that my assigned identity is what represents me but not all the time. For example, because my sex is female I’m supposed to look or act in a mannerly way. Also, people think that because I live in the United States I shouldn’t speak Spanish because English should be the only language spoken here. My box is a counter narrative of these few dominant narratives because I get to share some of my chosen identities that I am proud of and items that represent me. I have chosen to include a award in my Shadow Box because I earn a lot of awards trying to make a change in my family and move my family forward and show oppressors my family is capable of getting educated and move forward. I included a black rose because usually people believe the color black is a depressing color but I really like black and gold and roses are a flower that people find really pretty so it represents that it can be something nice not always depressing. I included my family/friends and Mexican flag because I am very happy to be Mexican and have such a loving and supportive family and friends (I wasn’t able to include everyone) but I included them because they support me a lot. I included hoops in my Shadow Box because people think if you wear them you are a hoe or a chola but to me I use them because they are really pretty and they make me comfortable with who I am. I included a SF symbol because is my hometown.
Wendy,
I admire how well you explained what your shadow box means to you. I love how you put your favorite things and people like your jewelry, hot Cheetos, and pictures of family and friends. I also really liked how you incorporated your hispanic culture with the picture of the Virgencita. My favorite item in your shadow box is your award, you blew me away with how passionate you are about striving for a better life for yourself and your family. It takes a lot of hard work but you seem like your ready to conquer anything that comes your way. Good luck and continue to push forward and make your dreams come true!!
Best of luck,
Estela
Dear Wendy,
I love how creative your shadow box is. What stood out most to me is that you defy the standards of being a Mexican and a female. I like that whatever you do, it’s for your family and to show everyone that they’re wrong; you earn a lot of rewards, proving your intelligence and that you can strive.
Dear Wendy,
I love your shadow box. You seem so creative and like an amazing person. I love the fact that you chose a black rose because if I did a shadow box myself I would do the same. I also like that you shared your favorite pictures and objects. Keep being yourself because you’re awesome!
Dear Wendy,
Your shadow box theme is really nice and I love how you included a lot of pictures of memories you’ve had with your friends and family. It’s really cool and creative how you kind of applied dominant and counter narratives to your black roses thing as well, how people see it as a depressing color but to you it’s a really pretty color.
Thank you for sharing your shadow box!
Dear Wendy,
I love how you decorated your box and I loved your reasoning behind the black rose. It was cool and I hadn’t thought about it like that before. However, I wonder how the black rose connects to your identity.
I also liked reading what you wrote about your award and your hoops. Your hoops are the coolest and you look the coolest wearing them ;).
I love you, your shadow box is great.
Sincerely,
Judith
Dear Wendy, I am honestly happy about how you did this project. I really liked your artist statement I thought that it was very strong you said a lot in just one paragraph which is outrageous. Your shadow box is cool I liked how you added a lot of pictures and I also liked the black roses you added in your shadow boxes. You did very good in this project keep up the good work.
Sincerely, Bryan Moreno 🙂
Dear Wendy,