Tocando Posadas (navideñas)

Jackie Patino, b. 2001

Materials: Oil on Canvas

Size: 24x36

Jackie Patino is in their final year at SAIC

The work has free shipping

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Posadas are traditional Christmas festivities done in Latin America. I grew up going to these, where I was often asked to dress up as Mary and do reenactments of her and Joseph asking for shelter at inns as they make their way to Bethlehem. These reenactments then proceeded with huge parties, piñatas, food and sugary treats. All these things clouded my memories of winter and Christmas. Very warm memories.

I became estranged with religion due to personal traumatic experiences and as I've grown older these estranged feelings continue to complicate the way I remember my childhood, and it muddied the way I see myself and my ethnicity. This painting is a continuation of that exploration of muddied feelings. The creature on the right, existing in a space that doesn't exist yet I consider everywhere throughout time, is me. I'm reaching in to touch the memories of posadas, with the desire to turn off the lights as an analogy to turning off my memories, but I'm hesitant. I watch past versions of myself reenact the nativity scene, with baby Jesus being the lime used in my exorcism. I further my hesitancy by hitting the piñata (my favorite part of posadas when I was growing up) with my foot. All these convoluted feelings and memories of winter are still warm yet cold.