Something Brown

Something Brown

“Something Brown” is an exploration and representation of both the ambiguity and clarity of the word "brown" in reference to ones skin color through my own family's relationship to immigration, race, and assimilation. The work shown here is a small portion of a larger collection. Constructing one's racial identity is a particularly complex process in the United States for obvious reasons, namely our history of oppression, imperialism, and our deep roots in the time period of colonization as defining functions of our institutions, culture, and governing systems. Racially marginalized communities (and marginalized communities in general) often find themselves in the odd position of defining their identity in relation to the dominant social group, in this case whiteness. This relationship in the context of racial identity puts the individual on a spectrum in comparison to whiteness based on the various social, economic, regional, and cultural backgrounds that everyone carries with them. This can be a tumultuous and confusing process as there is no guidebook that is given to anyone defining where they might fall on this spectrum. The dissonance between the simplicity of a physical trait of an individual (such as brown skin ) and the convoluted nature of the racial construct defined by the white supremacist structure can be overwhelming at times. The name "Something Brown" is negation of this complexity and an expression of the confusion these parameters can cause. These themes are what this work discusses through my experience of continually going through this process of exploring your racial identity. My hope is that viewers consider the nuance and complex nature of this relationship and perhaps reflect on the nuance and complexity of how their own identities relate to this larger racial construct and its social/cultural effects on us all.

Christian Orellana Bauer

Christian Orellana Bauer is a multidisciplinary artist working in Portland, OR. They were born in Cuenca, Ecuador and moved to Portland as a child. Growing up as a multicultural BIPOC in a majority white city and existing between multiple cultures throughout their life has immensely influenced their artistic practice, perspective of the world, and identity. They graduated with a B.A in Arts and Letters from Portland State University and have shown their work in galleries and events around Portland and Oregon as well as having been recognized by NPR in 2018 under the stage name Iro and the Moon. Their work is a method of exploring both their own identity and a wide range of external themes through this multicultural lens often considering the concept of an ethnocentric v.s ethnorelativist viewpoint, intersectionality, the idea of cultural belonging, and its relationship to race.

This work is part of a larger body of work which forms a poem:

Once we were happy
Now we are brown
Just what we look like
Just who we are
"Perdí mi país"
"Eso de Cuenca..."
"Ugh, I'm so white"
"And I'm so, so, sorry"
But do not be sad
For you are American
Lonely, so lonely...
Lonely American
Happy, yes, happy!
Happy American!
Just what we look like
Not who we are
Once we were happy
Now we are brown
Once we were happy
Now we are brown

Photography, cyanotype, digital prints, paint pen, poetry