Clare Rojas, an artist based in San Francisco, is a member of both the Mission School and the Dealer Studio. She is widely known for creating powerful, ethnic-themed folk-art-style tables that address traditional gender divisions. She has worked in a wide range of media, ranging from fashion to installation art, children’s book illustration to photography. Her most striking and recent pieces are titled: “The Gender Card”, and “Swinging Door”.
In “The Gender Card” Rojas draws a detailed, original portrait of an elderly seamstress in her mid-fifties who wears her signature red wedding-gown, white gloves, and a long, bejeweled sash; she holds a purse with an invitation inside, which lists her nationality, name, date of birth, and place of employment (Americans, born in the States). The accompanying words, “She wears a sash / worn by a woman who is not from this world” infuse the piece with subtle imagery and subtly suggest that Rojas identifies with the woman, identifying with her nationality. The invitation inside reads as follows: “You like your nationality, just as I do. Come visit us in our studio, on Saturday, if you would like to see us in action.”
In “Swinging Door” Rojas draws a still-life of two men sitting on a bench while a door swings open to reveal a beautiful older woman, whom they have met earlier in the day. Within a few panels the viewer learns that this woman is their partner, though this is only after their initial hesitant approach to each other, when their true relationship is revealed. The name of their nationalities is never mentioned, nor is their height and weight (and even their names). However, their shared interest in art and their immediate rapport with a seemingly anonymous European model makes these characters seem somehow simultaneously European (albeit wealthy) and American.