Lorraine Garcia-Nakata

Lorraine Garcia-Nakata (born 1950) is an American artist who works with various mediums including pastel, charcoal, ceramics, printmaking, installation, sculpture, and paint. Her work surrounds themes of the daily life, portraiture, and realism and is known for her large scale artworks. She is a member of the Royal Chicano Air Force (RCAF) artist collective since 1974.

Major artworks

Southside Park Mural, 1977 The famous multi panel mural project in Sacramento, California was restored in 2001 by the RCAF group, including Garcia-Nakata who designed, outlined, and painted Indigenous women with their hands open. These murals provide a culturally appropriate setting for community events such as Cinco de Mayo, Dia de Los Muertos, or the Barrio Olympics. Each panel has its own distinctive artistic style and make references to pre-Columbian, Neo-Amerindian, and Chicanx youth iconography.

Friends, No Matter What, 2008 This artwork medium is charcoal and pastel on paper and was exhibited online at the Museo Eduardo Carrillo website. It represents the artist herself and her African American friend playing hide and seek, while standing back to back and blindfolded. It references the racial tension that has existed throughout American culture and personal experiences of the artists.

Publications

Chola Enterprises, 2015 Children’s Stories for Adults: from the I Can Eat Fire Writings, 2018 Illuminations: Day of the Dead Indigenous and Colonial Expressions, 2004 Mexican Museum/La Casa Futura, Lorraine García-Nakata, 1998

Awards 2003, California Arts Council, Visual Arts Fellowship Award, Printmaking