Date of Award
Spring 5-22-2026
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Education
First Advisor
Caitlin Black
Second Advisor
Juana Estrada Hernandez
Third Advisor
Andrea Allen
Abstract
This thesis centers the experiences of Mexican American students, alumni, faculty, and community-based artists navigating art and design higher education in the United States. Grounded in the question ¿Dónde está la gente latina?—where are the Latino people?—this research examines how representation and culturally sustaining practices shape Mexican American students' sense of belonging and creative agency in a country with systems built on white supremacy
Using pláticas as the primary methodology—a relational, conversational approach rooted in community and storytelling traditions—alongside autohistoria-teoría and Chicana Feminist Epistemology, this study draws on eight in-depth pláticas with Mexican American creatives across art + design higher education and community-based art spaces. Frameworks including Borderlands theory, Nepantla, and Culturally Sustaining Arte Pedagogies are what ground the analysis in this research.
Three themes emerged from the pláticas: the persistent lack of representation in curricula, faculty, and institutional structures; cultural resistance as a creative and generative force; and the critical role of community-built spaces in sustaining belonging when institutions fail to provide it. Findings reveal that Mexican American students have always carried the cultural wealth, creativity, and resilience to thrive in these spaces—but have been asked to do disproportionate labor to belong in art + design spaces and institutions not designed for them.
This research argues for art and design education that moves beyond symbolic inclusion toward structural accountability—centering mirrors, not just windows, for future generations.
Recommended Citation
Bravo, Itzanya, "Echándole Ganas: Pláticas of Belonging + Resistance in Art + Design" (2026). Masters Theses. 1632.
https://digitalcommons.risd.edu/masterstheses/1632
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Included in
Art and Design Commons, Art Education Commons, Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education Commons, Curriculum and Social Inquiry Commons, Latina/o Studies Commons