Spanglish Chick

I can picture her out on the streets…alone…with her paint. It’s better that way sometimes….no one to bother or distract. This native Eastsider has talent that just won’t quit as she mixes it up and freely speaks her mind. Her voluptuous, strong doll-like characters, Sand Chikz can be found anywhere this graffiti artist Sand One wants to paint. This nineteen year old hustler comes from the laid back barrios of  Los Angeles—east that is. And has had time to run through the streets of Miami and Puerto Rico – creating her unique masterpieces, but this is only the beginning.
What is your real name? Maria de la Concha Chaves
What is your hometown? East Los Angeles, California

Age? 19 [she stands to have many opportunities in front of her...how awesome]

Did you go through art training or are you self taught? Street taught

Where can the public purchase your merchandise/art? City West Boutique or the Garage
What was your inspiration to do what you do? The freedom of making anything…a piece of canvas, a wall or even a truck…anything can be a surface to paint on.
What is your favorite childhood memory? My mother adding chunks of mascara to her eyelashes and me telling her it looked like spider legs now I exaggerate my eyelashes and I paint huge overlapping lashes on my cartoons

How do you describe your artwork? Ghetto hardcore, Sand Chikz, ‘Anything you can do I can do better, or ‘It’s a man’s world and I’m in it!’
Can people find you on the net? Where? sandoner.com

Where do you see yourself going in the future with your artwork? I hope I get financial stability but I m not sure what awaits…I’m not sure what I’m doing tomorrow.

How did you get the name “Sand”? I just liked it. It’s smooth…it’s me, now when you hear Sand, Sand is me.
Is it any different being a female artist verses a male artist? It is scarce… there are not many females. It is only a few.
What is your personal history? I was born in East Los Angeles…I love pupusas and I paint Sand Chikz all day. I don’t smoke, drink, or party… I just paint and I love Thai food! Pad that shrimp!! And I enjoy being a loaner.

What is your favorite type of music? Jose Jose/ Emmanuel/Sublime /Ana Gabriel/Gangstarr/Biggie/Ghetto Boyz/Mos Def/the Grouch [can anyone really pick one?]
Any suggestions for future artists? Just paint but don’t call it abstract because you can’t paint…look at other art and follow the art you feel is right. Don’t listen to people, because at the beginning, they will always doubt of your success until proven wrong.

What are your favorite surfaces to paint on? Walls, trucks, smooth dumpsters, leather purses, U-hauls, metal abandoned buildings … [I think the list goes on]

What is your life motto? ‘Go big or go home’ along with ‘Get it while the game is big!’

Definitely check online www.sandoner.com though if you find yourself in East LA then take a look around the Sand Chikz can’t be missed.

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Finally, two weeks later, I am able to summarize a recap of the “LLow Down” showcase and benefit for Girls Rock Camp Austin, I was proudly a part of, presented by Ladies Lotto and Lola Ink at this year’s SXSW conference in Austin, Texas.

Although I now live in New York City, by way of Chicago, Texas is the closest place to home for me since I lived there for more than ten years. I resided in Houston but traveled to Austin any chance I could get. I love Austin. Austin can be charming anytime of the year, but if you’ve never been there during the SXSW music festival, which takes place every year in March, it’s hard to explain just how astounding it is to see the streets, of a rather small city, bustling with musicians, press, fans, agents and artists alike and to hear bands playing simultaneously every few steps.

When Ladies Lotto (LL) an international lifestyle and networking community aimed at developing the professional and personal success of independent women, decided to start an Austin chapter, LL members, Catherine Wentworth (DJ Cat NYC) and Lorraine Lamont (Lola Ink) approached Ladies Lotto founder, Natalie Blacker, in launching the Austin chapter during SXSW. Soon after, the event planning process quickly accelerated, with the successful outreach that lies within the LL community. A networking mixer with women from coast to coast (Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and more) assembled for the LL networking mixer at Parkside with hosts Sarah Cirkiel, Lorraine Lamont and Ruby Veridiano before heading to the “LLow Down” event at The Music Gym.

As early as 8 p.m. The Music Gym was filled with energetic talent from all over the country. The showcase included host, Ruby Veridiano, who presented on the outside stage, a plethora of talented rock and pop bands, an inside booth dedicated to a lineup of amazing DJs spinnin’ everything from electro, pop, rock ‘n roll, techno and house music, an inside and outdoor bar, and a side room used by KarmaLoop TV (www.karmalooptv.com) for interviewing all the talent. LL member, KK Graham, covered a particularly charming interview with The Beatards. There was no inactive corner at The Music Gym on the night of March 18.

Some highlights of the night included the bands Frank and Derol (Big Picture Media), the adorable duo from Los Angeles, composed of Brandi Cyrus (yes, she is the older sister of Miley and daughter of Billy Ray) and Codi Caraco, who made their first ever appearance at SXSW this year; The Colourist (Big Picture Media); The New Collisions (Big Picture Media); Patches (Girls Rock Camp); Mussels (Woxy); The Beatards (Mixtape Riot); and Miz Metro. After several bands rocked the stage, the mood slightly shifted around 11 p.m. when The Beatards, the New York hip-hop trio from Brooklyn, shook up the crowd with extreme freestyle lyrical rawness. The Beatards were joined onstage by an impromptu beatbox performance by Chris Sullivan a.k.a. Shockwave followed by a soulful performance by New York’s very own, Miz Metro (Laura O’Reilly) who also graced the event filming and interviewing people for Miz Metro TV.

Inside, the dance floor was filled with revelers shaking to the beats of the DJs, Automatic Panic (Citrusonic), DJ Cat NYC (Citrusonic), Ceeplus Bad Knives and Fredster of Houston, Texas, Skrillex (Ultra Records), DMNDAYS (Bloodcompany), Johan (Lose Control) and DJ John Bourke of Trash Yourself (Dance Robots Dance) who played a notably rockin’ set.

“The showcase was a true collaboration amongst peers, bringing the most amazing women together to create an event that highlighted individual work as well as help raise money for a great cause,” said Natalie Blacker, founder of Ladies Lotto.

All in all, the “LLow Down” showcase and benefit for Girls Rock Camp Austin turned out to be a beautiful night of music goodness and a perfect launch for Ladies Lotto Austin. For more info on Ladies Lotto check out http://ladieslotto.com.

Spanglish Chick contributor Susan Justus is a quirky mix of Filipino, Cherokee and Caucasian blood. She was born in the States and has lived all over the U.S. She works full-time in the legal profession and as a freelance writer and, at times, a mentor. Her daily vices include coffee and comics. Susan is the founder of JustusPR and currently resides in New York City.

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My editor, Tamara and I woke up to the chilly weather…No surprise, right? Wrong. What happened to our Spring? Well, we decided to take a break..I mean, come on, we have been going non-stop since we got here. We checked in Thursday and then headed for the showcases. We made Ozomatli’s concert at Auditorium Shores which was awesome….not only were they great but somehow the concert grounds were almost spotless. Wow I was impressed. Then we ended our night with Ladies Lotto & Lola Ink presenting “Low Down”- an unofficial SXSW showcase (we’ll have more details on them later).
Friday afternoon, at Cafe Mundi, we were entertained by Bo-Peep, Girl in a Coma,

plus a few others. Alot of us are on a budget so the Austin venues are having free concerts to keep people entertained. Smart move….but I don’t mind paying for someone I really want to see. We paid to see the Japan Nite Showcase at Elysium, watching JinnyOops! along with another talented band from Japan then it was off to other venues. We stopped in to Buffalo Billards…Margaret Cho was gonna be there…well I am not a fan. Hehe…now I remember why…oh well. Next Club Vice, the editor knows one of the showcasers, DJ Cat. She was spinning some excellent music…I mean it had everyone on the floor, moving…hehe…you should have seen their moves. Next year someone should have a free dance workshop….Anyone??
Tonight they host the SXSW Music Awards…plus a million different bands in many different venues. The options are endless….what will we choose?
P.S.Don’t worry Tamara got some great shots and we will have them up soon.

UPDATE: Check out our Flickr feed at the bottom of the front page. SXSW pics are up!

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Well, we are off to Austin this morning to check out SXSW! We’ll be making updates as we can. Check out our facebook and twitter pages for any kind of randomness we throw out there. We hope to hit up some good venues and parties to report back to you! We’ve been pretty busy the last few weeks, and hope to bring you some cool stories after we return. I (tamara) have one pending about Latina Jews, look for it closer to Passover. Our founder (Eloisa) has one coming up about her opinion on education. And of course, we always have contributors and we like to write about stuff we’re thinking about in between. Enjoy your weekend friends! besos …

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Kat Von D

People aren’t always what they seem.  As soon as I walk into a room, people peg me as Irish. Granted, my looks fit the bill. I’m pale with a few freckles thrown in for good measure, blue eyes, high forehead, and a pointy nose. Just looking at me, you wouldn’t know that I’m Scotch-Irish, German, and more Cherokee than someone of my skin color should be allowed. Oh, and Jewish. That’s right. A Scotch-Irish, German, Cherokee Jew. Who would’ve guessed?

It stands to reason, then, that the people whose faces we all know from movies and TV and tabloids aren’t always what they seem.  And if you take a closer look at the celebrities we all know and love, you might find more Latinos than you were expecting.

Take Cameron Diaz, for instance. Tall, thin, blonde hair, and some of the brightest natural blue eyes I’ve ever seen in my life. It would be easy to label her Nordic and be done. But the last name … Diaz? Oh, yes, she’s Latina. Her father was a second-generation Cuban American. She might not be able to respond to you in Spanish, but she says she’ll understand what you’re saying.

Houston native Alexis Bledel is another “closet” Latina. At least with Diaz, you get a hint with her surname. Learning that Alexis is Latina is likely to catch someone completely off guard, but in reality, her Argentinian and Mexican roots are more ingrained in her than Diaz’s Cuban roots. Alexis only spoke Spanish until she began elementary school as an English as a Second Language student. Even fellow Latina America Ferrara was surprised when she heard Alexis speaking Spanish at an interview with a Spanish language magazine.

I was amazed to find out that someone who played Italian so well that I thought she really was Italian turns out to be Latina, and Jewish. Jamie-Lynn Sigler, best known for her role in The Sopranos, has a Cuban-Jewish mother, and a Jewish father. Not only is she fluent in Spanish, she’s also fluent in Greek. The girl is full of surprises.

The list goes on with celebrities like the redheaded Joanna Garcia, who has a Spanish-American mother and a Cuban-born father and played the daughter of the very Caucasian Reba McEntire on the sitcom Reba. There’s Avatar star Zoe Saldana, who spent a big part of her childhood living in the Dominican Republic. And don’t be fooled by tattoo artist Kat Von D’s decidedly German surname of Von Drachenberg. Her parents, who both have European ancestry, hail from Argentina, and Kat was born in Mexico. Even Disney star Vanessa Hudgens is a mix of Irish, Native American, and Chinese-Filipino-Spanish.

And don’t think I’ve forgotten about the men. You’ve got Charlie Sheen, who’s real name is Carlos Estevez. His father, Martin Sheen (whose real name is Ramon Estevez), is Spanish and Irish. Benjamin Bratt’s mother is Peruvian.

Former MTV VJ LaLa Vasquez, a proud Latina from a Puerto Rican family, said in her blog, “One thing about being Latina is that there isn’t one look that comes with the territory. I don’t expect people to know my cultural background just by glancing at me … If you’re lucky enough to visit various countries in Latin America, you’ll be baffled to see the blackest of the black and the lightest of the light living together. And I dare you to ask one of them to prove their Latinidad.”   {Latinidad, most literally, is the identity of Latinos/as. More figuratively, it is a sensibility and way of being-in-the-world that expresses who one is and what one’s culture is about.}

Spanglish Chick Contributor Karah Leigh lives in Houston with her boyfriend and two awesome dogs. Known for her on-air talent at Houston’s 94.5 The Buzz, Karah is not only ‘in the know’ about music, she’s in the loop on pop culture and celebrity entertainment. Visit her Houston Examiner page for more juicy celebrity news and updates!

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KarinaNistal…..if you haven’t seen this singer/songwriter perform just yet you have been definitely missing out and need to make this a priority.  You see her onstage ….she looks amazing but then you close your eyes and the rhythms flow through you as you just  keep moving to her freestyling not wanting to stop. She had had several years of being featured on numerous Dance and Hip Hop releases, then Karina decided it was time to release her own first full-length bilingual debut album, Nistyle on (Starlightbeats). She has been featured at the 2007 Latin Billboards Music Awards & Conference then she toured with her collective Rebel Crew to the Middle East with Armed Forces Entertainment (AFE) to provide support and morale for our troops.  She is not unfamiliar with the MUN² bilingual video network or SXSW Music Festival in Austin as she has been showcased there too.

Overall Karina is in the public eye performing regularly with her 8-piece band of outstanding musicians, The Karina Nistal Band at Bohemeos cafe, House of Blues Houston, several local festivals and cities all over Texas and has many supporters and fans who will keep their loyalty to this talented chick.

Name: Karina Nistal

Hometown: Houston, Tx

How are old are you?
aw, come on…you know a woman can never tell her age

What kind of day captivates you?
There’s nothing more astounding to me than a warm and sunny day to bring everything to life.

Who has inspired you the most?
Gloria Estefan, Celia Cruz, La India, Sade, Lauryn Hill, Selena, Janet
Jackson, Billie Holiday, Mary J Blige, MC Lyte, Stevie Wonder, Hector
LaVoe, Buena Vista Social Club, Los Hermanos Lebron, Eddie Palmieri, Al
Green, Earth, Wind, & Fire, the Doors, Michael Jackson, Los Amigos
Invisibles, Masters At Work, Bob Marley – just to name a few 

When did you decide music was the path for you?
In high school I was always doing the ethnic days (5 de Mayo), talent
shows, choir competitions and I realized I love to sing so much I want to
sing for a living for the rest of my life.

What project are you working on now?
The completion of my sophomore album “Nistalgia” *sigh* more to come soon.

How is it working w/ a bunch of guys in a band?
LOL – Working with the fellas is fun. They are pretty low-maintenance and
have the best interests for the band in mind. They are constantly making
suggestions on how to improve our live show and on top of being completely
talented, they know how to work as a team. We are like our own family.

Do you have any advice to people wanting to pursue music career?
This industry takes A LOT of persistence. Make yourself accessible, play a
lot of gigs especially if they will give you the exposure. Be friendly,
promote yourself daily, don’t be afraid to take rejections (not everyone
is going to like what you’re doing.)
Put something towards your goal everyday and most importantly NETWORK! You
never know who you’ll meet.

When is your next show?
Our next show is Saturday, Feb 6th at Last Concert Cafe – 1403 Nance,
Houston 77002 at 10pm!

Where can we find info on you?
www.karinanistal.com, www.myspace.com/karinanistal,
www.facebook.com/karinanistal, www.reverbnation.com/karinanistal

What do your message to the world would be?
Life your life with joy, peace, and L.O.V.E. (living on various elements)

What is your favorite cartoon?
I had to answer this question the other day and I remembered about a dozen
cartoons from the 80’s – I used to love Inspector Gadget, Ghostbusters,
Teen Wolf, Thundercats & Heathcliff just to name a few.

Popularity: 56% [?]

When you look at her artwork – you wonder what inspires her to paint.  Her images are so exquisite that they can keep you in a daze, waiting to see what is next.  As she pours her soul onto the canvas, it seems to capture a certain infatuation as you see things through her eyes.

Name: Julie Zarate

Hometown: Houston, Tx

How do you feel about your art?

I feel it is continuously evolving. When I hit on something new, whether a style, a medium or an execution, I tend to get really excited and run it into the ground until I’m tired of it … then move on to the next thing. But I love revisiting those old friends, and creating with the new things I’ve discovered along the way, I wind up with something of a fusion that I really like.  I guess you could say it’s rather incestuous.

What kind of mediums do you work in?

Pretty much anything, really, except watercolors — I never could get the hang of those.  I started out in ink, moved into colors by way of tempera [poster paint], and ultimately acrylic.  At the time, I was so afraid of oils.  Seeing as I am self-taught, I knew there were many rules that came with working with oil, so it was daunting. But when I found myself trying to replicate the look of oil with acrylics, it was tedious. I took the plunge then, reading as much as I could, experimenting, etc., and now oil is my favorite medium. When I discovered what it does with wax [encaustic], it opened up a whole new world for me. At some point, I would like to try my hand at watercolors again, though.

What inspired you to become an artist?

I don’t really know the answer to that. It’s something that I’ve always had in me since before I could even write my name. It’s a primitive thing that I’ve tapped into and have appreciated all of my life. You may as well ask me what inspired me to be human.

What is your background training in art?

Apart from the mandatory public school classes and an Art Appreciation class in college, I have no formal training. What I learned, I learned from studying other artists. The public library was a great tool for me growing up, and I was always drawn to picture books. Ultimately, those picture books became art books.  I have a pretty good collection of books of my own now, to which I refer to time an again.  When I actually began painting, I used to do reproductions of other artist’s works.  Some of my early influences were Diego Rivera, Patrick Nagel and Paul Gaugin. I used to believe that the closest I could get to it looking like the original, I was successful. Then I realized that success lied in doing my own thing. But I learned a lot in those reproductions; things that are difficult to explain in a classroom.

What do you feel motivates you to paint?

Several things:  being aware of my own mortality and knowing my time here is short; the sheer desire to feel the weight of a brush in my hand and create something new; having a good excuse not to do housework.

Do you support any organizations in Houston?

The local art and music scene

What is your favorite place to grab a bite to eat any day of the week?

Van Loc Vietnamese Restaurant serves up some of the best food in town; Brother’s Tacos, though, is the bomb.  If I could get there easily, I’d have to say Treebeard’s is my favorite restaurant in Houston, hands down.

When is your next exhibit?

I have a few, actually!  ARTOPIA 2010 by Houston Press on January 30th at 2101 Winter Street; EL CORAZON 2010 at the Bath House Culture Center in Dallas; WORLD OF IMAGINATION V.3 at the APW Gallery in New York; BEAUTIFUL GRIM [to be announced] in San Francisco.  I also have some work up at GALLERY CHIMMAYA in Los Angeles and BETZ GALLERY in Houston at the moment.

Where can people find your artwork and you?

I’ve just signed with BETZ GALLERY, so you can find a good portion of my work there. As for me, I’m usually in my studio cranking it out.

Have you ever traveled overseas? Or where would you go and why?

I’ve never traveled abroad, unless you count Oahu.  I have a mental list of places I would love to visit:  Cuba, Spain, Vienna, Japan, Turkey … but I would want to come back home.  [It’s a Texas thing ]

Any words to the upcoming artists?

Just keep on keepin’ on. Don’t be daunted by perceived failures, because everything you do is a step toward success. Also, if you’re in it for the money, hang up your beret.  You have to LOVE what you do.  And when you do, it shows. 

What is your favorite drink?

Ginger Ale

What is your favorite quote?

“We are the facilitators of our own creative evolution.”

-         Bill Hicks

You can find Julie Zarate’s amazing art at http://www.six06.com or become a fan on Facebook @ Julie Zarate

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