Marsha Gómez: Sculptor, Potter, Activist

The energy and spirit that go into my work result in a unique expression of respect and reverence for women, the Earth, and indigenous way of life.

Marsha Anne Gómez was an amazing sculptor, potter, and activist. She was born on December 24, 1951 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She was the eldest of five siblings. She was of Choctaw and Mexican-American descent, so she was always extremely close to her indigenous roots. At a young age, she was inspired by her father’s activism when he fought against Dow Chemicals for dumping toxic chemicals in the Achafalaya Basin (Notable American Women). She graduated from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville with a degree in Arts Education. In 1981, she moved to Austin, Texas and became active in pottery and sculptures, teaching, and social-change activism. She taught art to seniors in the community centers. Her artwork was featured in her personal shows and collective exhibits. She went on to win many awards including the La Pena Rebozo Award for achievement in the Latino Arts Community and the Bannerman Fellowship Award.

In addition, she cofounded the Indigenous Women’s Network in 1983. Because of her active participation with the arts community, she founded Artistas Indigenas, an arts organization of indigenous women headquartered in Austin. She also directed Alma de Mujer Center for Social Change, a 22-acre retreat center with outdoor stage, winding creek, herb garden, and lodges.

Marsha is best known for her sculpture “Madre del Mundo,” an indigenous woman gazing contemplatively at a globe cradled in her lap. The work was commissioned for a Mother’s Day peace protest at the Nevada Nuclear Test Site. However, the Bureau of Land Management confiscated the sculpture. It was released after a “legal tug-of-war” and Marsha placed it atop a hill at Alma de Mujer. She was asked to produced a second Madre del Mundo for the Peace Farm in the Texas Panhandle, and a third for Casa de Colores, an indigenous resource center and cooperative farm in Brownsville (Great Texas Women). A fourth Madre del Mundo was made for a temple, located outside the Nevada Test site. The temple was built for Sekhmet, ancient Egyptian lion-headed goddess of birth, fertility, and rage. The sculpture became an emblem of ecofeminism.

Sadly, Marsha fell victim to her son’s, Mekaya Gómez, schizophrenia.  On September 29, 1998, he murdered his mother.  Her funeral, which held at Alma de Mujer, was a tribute to her powerful presence in the community. People came from across the United States, Hawaii, Mexico, and even Canada to pay tribute to her.

Working with clay as my dear companion for the past fifteen years, I have come closer each year to a deeper union with the Earth and closer to an appreciation of how all the elements in the universe work together. In turn, I myself have become a vessel to the vessels that are created through my heart and hands.

References:

Notable American Women: A Biographical Dictionary Completing the Twentieth Century. Ed. Susan Ware and Stacy Braukman. Cambridge, Mass: Belknap, 2004. 239-40. Print.

“Marsha Gomez.” Great Texas Women. University of Texas at Austin. Web. 30 Apr. 2012. <http://www.utexas.edu/gtw/gomez.php>.

Images:

http://almademujer.us/content/alma-de-mujer-founder

http://peace.maripo.com/e_nm_co_2009.htm