Contemporary U.S. Expatriate Artists in San Miguel De Allende, Mexico: Challenges of Transnationalism and Acculturation
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University of the Incarnate Word The Athenaeum Theses & Dissertations 12-2014 Contemporary U.S. Expatriate Artists in San Miguel De Allende, Mexico: Challenges of Transnationalism and Acculturation Andrés Gamón University of the Incarnate Word, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://athenaeum.uiw.edu/uiw_etds Part of the International and Area Studies Commons, Mass Communication Commons, and the Sociology Commons Recommended Citation Gamón, Andrés, "Contemporary U.S. Expatriate Artists in San Miguel De Allende, Mexico: Challenges of Transnationalism and Acculturation" (2014). Theses & Dissertations. 40. https://athenaeum.uiw.edu/uiw_etds/40 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by The Athenaeum. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses & Dissertations by an authorized administrator of The Athenaeum. For more information, please contact [email protected]. CONTEMPORARY U.S. EXPATRIATE ARTISTS IN SAN MIGUEL DE ALLENDE, MEXICO: CHALLENGES OF TRANSNATIONALISM AND ACCULTURATION by ANDRÉS GAMÓN, BA, MA A DISSERTATION Presented to the faculty of the University of the Incarnate Word in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF THE INCARNATE WORD December 2014 Copyright by Andrés Gamón 2014 iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I owe thanks to many people who were part of this academic journey. I would like to thank Dr. Patricia Watkins for encouraging me to consider the International Education and Entrepreneurship program at the University of the Incarnate Word. I would also like to acknowledge Dr. Osman Özturgut for being my committee chair and mentor. I would also like to acknowledge Dr. Norman St. Clair, Dr. Absael Antelo, and my external committee member from UTSA, Dr. Viviana Rojas, for their unwavering commitment and insight that enriched my study so much more. Dr. Rojas, you are awesome! My heartfelt thanks go to the participants, without whose involvement this study could not have been possible. I admire and respect them for their willingness to take time out of their busy lives to meet with me and share their perspectives. My sincerest gratitude and admiration go to Marilyn Oliva from Action Ink, my editor. Her attention to detail, her expertise in editing, and her encouraging words were essential to the completion of this dissertation. My thanks also go to Olimpia Perez for her keen sense in understanding the transcription data and Dr. Rena Doering from San Antonio College for having recommended Olimpia Perez as a transcription expert. My love and thanks also go to my mother, Antonia R. Cisneros, to my beautiful Nancy, and my entire family, who encouraged and supported me throughout the entire process. To my musical brother and mentor, Luis Gasca, mil gracias for believing in me. Andrés Gamón iv CONTEMPORARY U.S. EXPATRIATE ARTISTS IN SAN MIGUEL DE ALLENDE, MEXICO: CHALLENGES OF TRANSNATIONALISM AND ACCULTURATION Andrés Gamón, PhD University of the Incarnate Word, 2014 The purpose of this interpretive qualitative study was to explore the transnational lives of contemporary U.S. expatriate artists living in San Miguel de Allende, a colonial town in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico, and the effect that location and the acculturation process have in their artistic production. The focus of this study was on U.S. expatriate artists living in San Miguel de Allende and how their transnational lifestyle influenced their artistic production, their integration into the local community, and their relationship with other Mexican and international artists living in San Miguel de Allende. Two research questions structured this qualitative study: (a) How do the contemporary U.S. expatriate artists living in Mexico make sense of their transnational lives and experiences? (b) How does the intercultural contact influence their artistic expressions and body of work? Nine participants were selected utilizing the snowball sampling technique and were interviewed through open-ended questions. The analysis of the data revealed five themes that are presented and related to the research questions and professional literature. The study found that the U.S. expatriate artists were able to live comfortably in both cultures and identified the social network factor as the most common connecting thread that wove through all of the participants’ comments. The constant influx of international artists mixed v with the local art community provided the unique setting for the intercultural exchange of ideas and experiences that influenced the artistic perspectives of the U.S. expatriate artists. This study specifically helps to fill in a void regarding knowledge and available scholarly research and literature on the perspective of contemporary U.S. expatriate artists in San Miguel de Allende. The findings of this study not only confirmed earlier studies but also contributes to the expanding field of transnationalism and acculturation. This study provides multilayered perspectives of the expatriate artists in keeping their familial and cultural links to their homeland through social networking and digital media ICT technology. The digital media ICT network allowed the artists to produce and distribute their work in a transnational global context unlike the traditional productions that occur in the context of the same time and space. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION .........................................................................................1 Context of the Study ......................................................................................................2 Mexico and U.S. citizens ......................................................................................3 San Miguel de Allende and the arts ......................................................................3 Background of the Researcher .......................................................................................5 Statement of the Problem ...............................................................................................6 Purpose of the Study ......................................................................................................6 Research Questions ........................................................................................................7 Overview of Research Methodology .............................................................................7 Theoretical Framework ..................................................................................................9 Transnationalism. ................................................................................................10 Acculturation.......................................................................................................11 Significance of the Study .............................................................................................11 Limitations of the Study...............................................................................................12 Delimitations of the Study ...........................................................................................13 Definition of Terms......................................................................................................13 CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW ..........................................................................15 Theoretical Framework ................................................................................................15 Transnationalism .................................................................................................15 Acculturation.......................................................................................................20 Mexico .........................................................................................................................26 vii San Miguel de Allende........................................................................................28 Expatriates...........................................................................................................30 U.S. expatriate artists in Mexico .........................................................................31 U.S. expatriate retirees and tourists in Mexico ...................................................34 CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY ...................................................................................38 Rationale for Qualitative Research ..............................................................................38 Research setting ..................................................................................................39 Participant selection ............................................................................................40 Protection of Human Subjects: Ethical Considerations ...............................................41 Ethics...................................................................................................................41 IRB ......................................................................................................................42 Interview Protocol – Interview Questions ...................................................................43 Demographic Questions ......................................................................................43 Interview Questions ............................................................................................43 Data Collection ............................................................................................................44