Altar - Carter Rowell

The name of my altar is Stop Femicide. My altar is honoring women, specifically Chicana and Latina women, who have been victims of femicide in relatively recent times. The bottom level represents the past while the top level represents the future, and the two levels come together to represent their unity and interdependent nature. The candles represent the element of fire and serve two purposes: to respect and remember the women who have been failed by society and to also give hope for the future. To represent diversity and fight back against homogenization and social death, I utilized different grains in the bread that I placed in the altar. The bread is a representation of the element of earth. Water glasses are included on both levels to represent the importance of life that came before us and the life that will come after us. Finally, the tissue paper designs (which represent the element of air) symbolize the opportunity for future change and forward movement.