Bio:

Christine Adame is an intermedia artist from Laredo, Texas, presently living and working in the DFW area. Her artwork relates to heritage, especially as informed by her mestiza identity. Christine earned her B.S. in Architectural Studies from the University of Texas at Austin and an M.F.A. in Intermedia Studio from The University of Texas at Arlington. She has exhibited in Texas, the Midwest, and Japan and has led digital fabrication workshops nationally and internationally. She is Assistant Professor of Graphic Design and Foundations at Texas Woman’s University.

adame (dot) christine (at) gmail.com

Artist Statement:

My work centers on heritage—nurtured by my experience as a mestiza Tejana, always at a confluence of cultures. My history is a nomadic one. I spent many years moving between Texas cities, with some unique stints in Nevada, Missouri, and Japan. This experience led me to cherish those things that are constant without place. I honored and valued my family, in particular my grandparents at the top of our familial pantheon. As I grow older, I wished I had asked them more questions before their passing. And yet, I carry with me both real and metaphysical heirlooms—especially ideas of culture, gender, and belonging—from my memories of them and the archetypes they embody. 

The materials of my work come from this desire to speak across generations and unpack the heirlooms sifted through my mestiza identity. At times I choose materials from the family archives I have—actual pictures, artifacts, words. Other times  I choose materials based on memory. I take these materials and sift through their implications, collecting the ideas embodied within them and reassembling them into new artifacts. The concept of nepantla, or “in-betweenness”, especially as described by Chicana scholar Gloria E. Anzaldúa shapes my work, which seeks to exist between apparent binaries such as the personal and political, gendered spaces, and state and self. Due to my interests, my work tends to use layered processes—including drawing, fibers, digital fabrication, and printmaking. My hope is to invite the envisioning of more multifaceted expressions of personal history and culture.