Chicano Printmaking Legacy
La March de Lupe Liberty, silkscreen
Introduction
Tony Ortega’s printmaking practice is deeply rooted in the Chicano movement and the rich tradition of community-based printmaking. Over more than three decades, Ortega has collaborated with two of the nation’s most influential Chicano print workshops—Self Help Graphics & Art in Los Angeles and Serie Project in Austin—to create silkscreen editions exploring cultural identity, migration, history, spirituality, and social justice.
Created through collaborative printmaking, these editions demonstrate Ortega’s commitment to the print as a democratic art form—one capable of reaching broad audiences while preserving stories of community, memory, and cultural resilience. Many of these works are held in museum and university collections, reflecting their significance within the history of contemporary Chicano art and printmaking.
Self-Help Graphics & Art
Los Angeles, California
Founded in 1970, Self Help Graphics & Art has been one of the most influential centers for Chicano and Latino printmaking in the United States. Through artist residencies, workshops, and collaborative publishing, the organization has supported generations of artists whose work addresses cultural identity, community, and social change.
Ortega’s involvement with Self Help Graphics connected his work to this larger artistic movement while expanding his exploration of Aztlán, migration, Mexican history, and Chicano cultural memory. Through the silkscreen process, he developed images that reflect the power of printmaking as a vehicle for storytelling, cultural preservation, and community expression.
Self-Help Graphics Editions
silkscreen
Frida y Diego nos muestran a México, 1991
Dimension Sheet: 37 3/8 × 28 1/8 in. (94.9 × 71.4 cm)
Image: 34 15/16 × 26 1/8 in. (88.8 × 66.3 cm)
Printed at Self Help Graphics, Los Angeles
Tony Ortega’s Frida y Diego nos Muestran a México explores the enduring influence of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera as symbols of Mexican cultural identity and artistic heritage. Through Chicano printmaking traditions, Ortega connects Mexican history, indigenous roots, and contemporary identity, creating a visual dialogue between Mexico and the Chicano experience in the United States.
Printed in 1991, the work represents an important moment in Ortega’s printmaking career and his relationship with one of the nation’s most influential Chicano print workshops.
Tony Ortega’s 1991 silkscreen Frida y Diego nos muestran México (Frida and Diego Show Us Mexico) was exhibited at Tate Modern in London as part of Frida: The Making of an Icon, June 25, 2026–January 3, 2027. The exhibition was organized by the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, in collaboration with Tate Modern
Los de Abajo, 1993
Silkscreen
Dimension Sheet: 25 3/16 × 35 1/8 in. (64 × 89.2 cm)
Image: 22 1/16 × 31 7/8 in. (56 × 81 cm)
Printed at Self Help Graphics, Los Angeles
Inspired by Mariano Azuela’s landmark novel Los de Abajo (The Underdogs), this silkscreen pays tribute to the resilience and dignity of ordinary people whose lives are shaped by social and political struggle.
In Los de Abajo (The Ones Below), Tony Ortega presents a vivid rural landscape that reflects the experiences of working-class communities and the cultural landscapes shaped by migration, labor, and displacement. Two brightly colored vehicles sit within an open field, evoking the movement of people, the journey between places, and the connection between land and livelihood.
Through bold color, simplified forms, and the expressive visual language of Chicano printmaking, Ortega transforms an everyday scene into a meditation on place, memory, and identity. The work reflects his ongoing interest in the lives of communities whose histories are often overlooked, while honoring the resilience and presence of those who exist “below” or outside dominant narratives.
Created at Self Help Graphics in Los Angeles, Los de Abajo is part of Ortega’s larger exploration of Chicano identity, cultural memory, and the relationship between personal experience and collective history.
A La Frontera de Aztlán, 1995
Silkscreen
Printed at Self Help Graphics, Los Angeles
A La Frontera de Aztlán explores the cultural landscape of the Chicano borderlands through imagery of the barrio, lowrider culture, and the enduring connection to Aztlán—the ancestral homeland and symbolic space of Chicano identity.
The composition presents a vibrant neighborhood street scene filled with mercados, restaurants, community gathering spaces, and lowriders that function as both vehicles and expressions of cultural pride.
A distinctive feature of the print is its interactive construction. The lowrider automobiles are designed to fold outward from the surface, transforming the print into a sculptural object. This playful yet symbolic gesture suggests movement, migration, and the layered histories carried across generations while inviting viewers to physically engage with the artwork.
By combining printmaking, paper engineering, and cultural symbolism, Ortega celebrates the creativity, resilience, and visual language of Chicano communities.
Serie Project
Austin, Texas
Founded in 1993, Serie Project has become one of the nation’s premier collaborative print workshops dedicated to supporting contemporary Chicano and Latino artists. Through its emphasis on collaboration and accessibility, Serie Project has expanded the tradition of socially engaged printmaking.
Ortega’s editions created with Serie Project continue his exploration of cultural memory, social justice, and the reinterpretation of historical and spiritual icons while extending the visual language of contemporary Chicano art.
Serie Project Editions
La Marcha de Lupe Liberty, 2004
Silkscreen
Dimension Sheet: 29.5 in x 22 in
Image: 23 × 16 in
Printed at Serie Project, Austin, Texas
La Marcha de Lupe Liberty reimagines two powerful symbols—the sacred image of Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Statue of Liberty—through the lens of contemporary Chicano identity, migration, and social consciousness.
In this silkscreen, Tony Ortega combines religious iconography, cultural symbolism, and the visual language of protest to explore themes of belonging, justice, and collective action. The figure of Lupe Liberty becomes a symbol of resilience and hope, reflecting the complex experiences of immigrant communities and the ongoing search for dignity and recognition.
Created at Serie Project in Austin, Texas, a nationally recognized organization dedicated to collaborative and community-based printmaking, this edition reflects Ortega’s continued engagement with Chicano history, visual storytelling, and the transformative potential of the printed image.
La Marcha de los Desvalidos, 2010
Silkscreen
Dimension Sheet: 30 in x 22 in
Image: 20 in x 16 in
Printed at Serie Project, Austin, Texas
In La Marcha de los Desvalidos (The March of the Dispossessed), Tony Ortega reimagines symbols of American identity through the lens of Chicano history and social consciousness.
A crowd of faceless figures gathers in the foreground, carrying signs and American flags, while a transformed Mount Rushmore rises behind them. The traditional presidential portraits are replaced with the faces of César Chávez, Che Guevara, Frida Kahlo, and Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales—figures representing labor rights, cultural identity, artistic expression, and social justice.
Through this powerful reinterpretation of national symbols, Ortega examines questions of belonging, representation, and whose histories are recognized within the American narrative. The work reflects his ongoing exploration of Chicano identity, activism, and the visual language of protest.
La Marcha de Che Lincoln, 2014
Silkscreen
Dimension Sheet: 30 in x 22 in
Image: 22 in x 16 in
Printed at Serie Project, Austin, Texas
In La Marcha de Che Lincoln, Tony Ortega brings together two powerful historical symbols—Ernesto “Che” Guevara and Abraham Lincoln—to explore ideas of revolution, freedom, and social justice.
Through the visual language of Chicano printmaking, Ortega examines the complexities of identity, political struggle, and the ongoing pursuit of equality. Created at Serie Project, the work reflects his interest in reinterpreting historical figures and cultural icons through a contemporary lens, creating new narratives that connect past movements with present-day experiences.
Museum & University Collections
Selected works from Tony Ortega’s printmaking practice are held in public collections throughout the United States and Mexico, including:
- Blanton Museum of Art — Austin, Texas
- Denver Art Museum — Denver, Colorado
- La Salle University Art Museum — Philadelphia, PA
- Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) — Los Angeles, California
- University of Denver Special Collections — Denver, Colorado
- Museo Estudio Diego Rivera — Mexico City, Mexico
- National Hispanic Cultural Center — Albuquerque, New Mexico
Prints created through Self Help Graphics & Art and Serie Project have become an important part of the history of contemporary Chicano printmaking. These collections preserve Ortega’s contributions to the visual culture of the Chicano movement and ensure that these works continue to be studied, exhibited, and appreciated by future generations.
A Continuing Legacy
For more than three decades, printmaking has remained central to Tony Ortega’s artistic practice. Through collaborations with Self Help Graphics & Art and Serie Project, his editions have contributed to the continuing legacy of Chicano printmaking—using the printed image to preserve history, challenge injustice, celebrate community, and expand the visual language of contemporary American art.
The artist retains copyright to the images displayed on this Web site. They may be used for non-commercial purposes if credit is given to the artist.
For commercial purposes, please contact Tony Ortega for permission to reproduce, publicly display, copy, distribute, or otherwise use such images.
For commercial purposes, please contact Tony Ortega for permission to reproduce, publicly display, copy, distribute, or otherwise use such images.