Anel I. Flores Portfolio

“Secret Secret” (2006). Oil pastel, watercolor, and latex on paper. 30 x 22. Copyright Anel I. Flores, 2024.
This collection of paintings by San Antonio–based artist Anel I. Flores (they/she) intimately captures a lesbian subject’s journey from secrecy and shame to unabashed freedom. Flores pairs portraits of lesbian couples with the words “secret” and “amor prohibido” (forbidden love) to represent the shame imposed by heteronormative conditioning. A painting of two women’s feet touching embodies a subtle yet powerful portrayal of clandestine lesbian intimacy. Flores also surrounds queer subjects with natural elements like animals, insects, plants, and water to reveal their equally natural place in our ecosystem. In one painting, Flores poses a naked butch body against a colorful sky, amplifying their connection to nature and all who inhabit it. In another, the words “mar y macha” remix the widely-reclaimed lesbian slur “marimacha” with an alternative meaning: “mar” (sea) and “macha” (butch)—honoring the fluidity and vastness of lesbian masculinity. In a similar vein, the collection’s final piece depicts a hybrid octopus/human figure extending from the ocean as a beautiful reclamation of the queer subject as Other. Altogether, the vivid colors of Flores’s portfolio powerfully illuminate the vitality of queer life and love on the path toward intersectional liberation.

“Mexican Legs” (2008). Watercolor and ink on paper. 7 x 9 1/2. Copyright Anel I. Flores, 2024.

“Las Vecinas” (2006). Oil pastel, watercolor, and latex on paper. 22 x 30. Copyright Anel I. Flores, 2024.

“Mi Vida Dreams en South Tejas” (2023). Oil on canvas. 48 x 48. Copyright Anel I. Flores, 2024.

“Mi Vida Dreams en South Tejas” (2023). Oil on canvas. 48 x 48. Copyright Anel I. Flores, 2024.

“They Were Called Four Eyes” (2024). Oil on canvas. 36 x 36. Copyright Anel I. Flores, 2024.

Anel I. Flores
Artist
Anel I. Flores (they/she; https://anelflores.com/) is a trans, queer Latina/e artist, writer, and activist whose extensive body of work is guided by Latina/e transfeminism, intersectionality, queer politics, and decolonial resistance. They hold an MFA in Creative Writing, having penned notable works like the chapbook La Fea and Lambda literary award-nominated book, Empanada: A Lesbiana Story en Probaditas. As a multidisciplinary artist, their work foregrounds ancestral healing, gender and bodily autonomy, and intersectional liberation.

Meagan Solomon
PubLab Fellow 2024
Meagan Solomon is a writer, scholar, and educator whose work is guided by her lived experiences as a Chicana Jewish lesbian. Based in Austin, Texas, she is currently an Assistant Professor of Feminist Studies at Southwestern University. In and beyond her academic work, she is invested in reimagining traditional forms of knowledge production by uplifting creative expression, personal storytelling, and pláticas (community conversations). She has published in journals such as Chicana/Latina Studies: The Journal of Mujeres Activas en Letras y Cambio Social (Women Active in Literature and Social Change) and The Journal of Lesbian Studies. She is also the co-creator of Sister Outsider Zine, a creative project inspired by the work of Audre Lorde.