The Border Art Workshop/Taller de Arte Fronterizo’s project, ESL: tonguetied/lenguatrabada, dealt with the subject of cultural identity and the difficulties encountered in learning a language other than one’s mother tongue. The project specifically referenced the impact of the recently adapted Proposition 187, a 1994 California ballot initiative designed to limit social services, health care, and public education for undocumented workers. At the same time, the project provided a space for responding to the implications of differentiating between “legal” and “illegal” immigrants. The installation consisted of a mock classroom with written questions on all surfaces and blackboard walls where viewers were invited to express their thoughts on the issues.
Curator: Louise Kirtland Boehm
Organizer: Boehm Gallery, Palomar College
Venue: Boehm Gallery, Palomar College, San Marcos
The Associated Student Government of Palomar College; Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE); Palomar College President’s Associates; Lila Wallace-Reader’s Digest International Artists Program, developed by Arts International, a division of IIE, and the Lila Wallace-Reader’s Digest Fund.