by Jessa Mae Mendiola
Grandma’s House

About the Artist
Jessa Mae Mendiola was born in the island of Leyte in the Philippines. At the age of seven, she immigrated to the United States with her family. As she moved to America at a young age , she did not have the opportunity to discover her Filipino heritage, history, and culture. Thus, she is reconnecting with her birth country by creating artworks that involve socio-political issues, Filipino-American identity, immigration, cultural practices, and colonialism. Jessa Mae Mendiola works with a variety of mediums such as paintings, drawings, sculpture, and installations.

Artist Statement
As we continue to shelter-in-place, I would spend days and hours reflecting and mourning for a world that may never come back. I would create sketches of both my homeland and Chicago to release stress as I try to find a new “normal.” I think of being confined to our home, wondering how families in other nations are coping, losing business as supplies and customers dwindle, and a sense of loneliness that comes with isolation. Through it all, I still hope and pray that at the end of this, we would become better, to not take for granted all that we had, and to heal.

View her work at: Jessa Mae Mendiola