Visual Artist and Professor of Central American Studies at Cal State Northridge, Beatriz Cortez is currently showcasing an exhibit with the idea of a singular career path as a way of contributing to society as a theme.
The artist asserts that vocational skills are not only used to get a job but can be used to express one’s self on the same way an artist might.
Students and faculty members attended the Tuesday, Mar. 1 show and greatly appreciated the exhibition of Cortez’s work.
The artist stated, “This installation is linked to my previous work, “The Cosmos.” That piece had a structure very similar to this. You could go inside and there were fun house-like mirrors.
One of her artwork, “Black Mirror,” was a big hit at the opening night show.
“I am interested in how the black mirror for Mesoamerican cultures was a way for people to define their future. In modernity the aptitude test is a way for you to define your destiny. So I wanted to have both versions here.” explained Cortez.
Years ago the Art department started a collaboration with the Technology department that would place a professional artist in the facilities of a Technology division.
Last year Cortez was chosen to be apart of the program. She was imbedded in the Auto-body program to work with sheet metal and auto-body paint.
She continued, “I also think that there’s something interesting about how I took the videos form the 1940’s. I took out the voice overs of the videos and I put them inside the ball, like it’s in that space.”
Art History instructor, Lisa Boutin-Vitela expressed her excitement for this event, “I enjoyed the dome that she created. It was fun to go inside.”
This event was a culmination of Cortez’s residency at Cerritos College. She has been on campus since Oct. 2015 as part of this program.
Gallery Director and Professor of Art History, James MacDevitt gave a brief summary of his role in this exhibit, “I was the one who imagined, founded, and created the residency. I worked alongside [Cortez] as she proposed the exhibition and as she built it.”
She expressed, “I hope [this piece] will inspire students to think with the skills and resources they have here at Cerritos College, they can make things that they haven’t imagined.”
