From its inception in the 1960s to its present form, contemporary Mexican American or Chicano art has developed as an art of identity, asserting the uniqueness of Chicanos and their dual Mexican and U.S. American cultural backgrounds. Because it emerged as a social phenomenon, however, many people outside the Chicano community have perceived Chicano art as merely protest art or social commentary, and Mexican American artists have been largely ignored in mainstream museums and absent in art history texts on American art. Yet more than ever before, Chicano art is diverse in medium, style, technique, and content—the cutting edge of a bold attempt to redefine and advance the American experience through new ideas of who we are as Americans and what American art is.

Contemporary Chican@ Art is a general introduction and guide to one of the most exciting and meaningful expressions in contemporary American art. Intended for the casual reader as well as for art history scholars and students, the book provides an overview of work created from the 1960s to the present. George Vargas follows the dramatic evolution of Chicano art within the broader context of American cultural history. He shows that while identity politics was and still is a prevailing force in Chicano expression, Chicano art has undergone a remarkable transformation, shifting from a strict Chicano perspective to a more universal one, while still remaining a people's art. In the concluding chapter, Vargas takes an in-depth look at selected Chicano artists who share their thoughts about the Chicano artistic enterprise and their own work.

George Vargas is Assistant Professor of Art History at Texas A&M University–Kingsville. A cultural worker and artist, he has an extensive background in Latin American and Latino studies, racial/ethnic studies, film studies, museum studies, public art, community development, and art/ education administration. He has received numerous academic, artistic, and community awards and fellowships, including a prestigious Ford Fellowship and a Martin Luther King, Jr./Cesar Chavez/Rosa Parks Fellowship at the University of Michigan, and has organized national and international exhibitions, including Chicano shows featuring the art collection of actor Cheech Marin.

• List of Figures
• Acknowledgments
• Preface
• Chapter 1. Chicano Art as American Art
• Chapter 2. The Emergence of Chicano and Chicana Art
• Chapter 3. Resistance and Affirmation in the 1990s
• Chapter 4. Into the Twenty-First Century
• Chapter 5. Catalogue of Selected Chicana and Chicano Artists
• Conclusion
• Notes
• Selected Bibliography
• Index