The Cooling Table
Miguel Guillen
Olympia, Washington
The Cooling Table, 2006-2007
Mixed media
Hate is subtly passed on from generation to generation. The cookies represent how hate can be offered as a customary part of growing up, in addition to how it is implicit and made alluring as an integral part of “tradition.”
This piece is meant to have an Americana look. The gingham cloth napkin and drawer lining in plaid with cherries are 1950s patterns that recollect the romantic notion of Generation in America. The cookies are made from Pillsbury Sugar Cookie dough, while the spatula and table are froma country kitchen. All these items helped me achieve a feeling of a generational narrative.
Being Latino and gay, I have experienced both the overt and subtle sides of hate. I think it is crucial for artists and arts organizations to talk of hate because–at least in my experience –many people don’t know what to do about, or how to have a dialogue about, hate. Through art, we can help people make a meaningful conscious and subconscious connection about how hate permeates and exists in our lives.
Bio
Miguel Guillen’s professional career includes serving as Program Manager at Artist Trust and co-founder and volunteer Executive Director for La Sala, an organization that seeks to raise the profile of Latino/a artists working in Seattle and surrounding communities. He was born in Mexico and raised in Washington. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Seattle’s Cornish College of the Arts, and he is a practicing visual artist.
