Sun Mad

Ester Hernandez, Sun Mad, 1982, screenprint on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Tomás Ybarra-Frausto, 1995.50.32, © 1982, Ester Hernández
Copied Ester Hernandez, Sun Mad, 1982, screenprint on paper, image: 2015 in. (50.738.1 cm) sheet: 2217 in. (55.943.2 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Tomás Ybarra-Frausto, 1995.50.32, © 1982, Ester Hernández

Artwork Details

Title
Sun Mad
Date
1982
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
image: 2015 in. (50.738.1 cm) sheet: 2217 in. (55.943.2 cm)
Copyright
© 1982, Ester Hernández
Credit Line
Gift of Tomás Ybarra-Frausto
Mediums Description
screenprint on paper
Classifications
Subjects
  • Landscape — celestial — sun
  • History — United States — labor history
  • Allegory — civic — injustice
  • Figure — fragment — skeleton
  • Object — fruit — grape
Object Number
1995.50.32

Artwork Description

In Sun Mad, Hernandez reconfigures the cheerful branding of the Sun-Maid raisin company into a grim warning. In response to her family's exposure to polluted water and pesticides in California's San Joaquin Valley, Hernandez sought to unmask the "wholesome figures of agribusiness," such as the Sun Maid. The skeletal figure draws attention to the dangers and adverse effects of the various chemicals listed in the print's lower register.


¡Printing the Revolution! The Rise and Impact of Chicano Graphics, 1965 to Now, 2020


Description in Spanish

En Sun Mad, Hernandez reconfigura la imagen jovial de la empresa productora de pasas para transformarla en una lúgubre advertencia. En respuesta a la exposición de su familia al agua contaminada y a los plaguicidas en el Valle San Joaquín, en California, Hernandez trató de desenmascarar a las figuras saludables de las agroempresas”, como la Sun Maid. La figura de un esqueleto dirige la atención hacia los peligros y los efectos adversos de las diversas sustancias químicas mencionadas en el extremo inferior del grabado.

¡Imprimir la revolución! Auge e impacto de las obras gráficas chicanas, desde 1965 hasta hoy, 2020

Exhibitions

Media - 2011.12 - SAAM-2011.12_1 - 77591
Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art
October 25, 2013March 2, 2014
Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art presents the rich and varied contributions of Latino artists in the United States since the mid-twentieth century, when the concept of a collective Latino identity began to emerge.

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