Lisa Alvarado, 'Spiral Yellow' Staple bound zine. 21 x 21 cm. 48 pages

This publication chronicles a period of research and production in advance of Alvarado's exhibition Spiral Yellow. A new element introduced in Spiral Yellow is the use of found fabric collaged and sewn into the work’s surfaces, further integrating textile into the paintings and simultaneously expanding the language of the hanging works with a set of assemblage qualities.

Alvarado’s use of sewing has opened up possibilities in this regard, allowing her to incorporate vintage fabric found on her tour travels and in thrift shops. This new approach is connected to the Chicano theorist Tomás Ybarra-Frausto’s writing on Raschuche, a Mexican American make-shift assemblage aesthetic. As he writes in his essay Rasquachismo: a Chicano sensibility, 1989: 'Resilience and resourcefulness spring from making do with what’s at hand (hacer rendir las cosas). This utilization of available resources makes for hybridization, juxtaposition and integration. Rasquachismo is a sensibility attuned to mixtures and confluence. Communion is preferred over purity.'

Published by The Modern Institute, Glasgow, 2024