Documenting my pocket of Los Angeles
In honor of International Women's Day, here is Judy Baca's mural "Hitting the Wall" painted, whitewashed and then re-painted on the 101 Freeway: I photographed this framed version of Baca's mural at the MOLAA's Judy Baca: Memorias de Nuestra Tierra, a Retrospective which has been extended. The exhibit will now close on March 27. In... Continue Reading →
On this April morning, my research rabbit hole pulled me down into Los Angeles’ millinery world. The US National Archives hosted a monthly #ArchivesHashtagParty on Twitter and chose the theme #ArchivesTipoftheHat. In researching some of the backstories to several images in local archives, I came across Harriett L. Wadley. Millinery work was a popular and... Continue Reading →
Over Thanksgiving, I started the lengthy process of extracting all the food stories documented in letters between my grandmother (Margaret) and her sister (Jan) in order to explore how their work in the kitchen related to food history of the time. I still can’t believe that, 20 years ago, I transcribed 83 of their letters... Continue Reading →
Lately I’ve been researching textiles as historical sources for women’s history. In this process, I came across the amazing quilts of mathematician Chawne Kimber. "Chawne Kimber is making some of the most powerful artworks today about race, language, women’s rights, and police brutality—all with a needle and thread," Maria Hlohowskyj (from womenarts.org). That sentence was... Continue Reading →
On Mother’s Day, I led a women’s history walking tour through downtown Los Angeles in honor of my own deceased mother. Mom was a passionate advocate for documenting women’s stories in Los Angeles. Sharing these stories seemed like the best way to honor her memory, especially since I incorporate her research into the tour script.... Continue Reading →
I spent part of National Storytelling Week (January 26 - February 2) immersed in the art of storytelling—radio storytelling. After a week-long Transom workshop in New Mexico, I produced, narrated, and edited my own radio segment that aired on Santa Fe’s KSFR on February 21, 2019. The piece features Santa Fe’s former City Historian Ana... Continue Reading →
Sharing this post I crafted for the Arboretum Library's Instagram: On March 10, 1841, poet Ina Coolbrith was born. In 1915, she was crowned California’s first poet laureate which is the same year Luther Burbank named his Crimson Eschscholtzia for her (this image comes from the @californiastatelibrary). Coolbrith praised the California Poppy with her 1893... Continue Reading →
Victoria Bernal 