Welcome to Judy Flores.com
Tonggan Guest House and Village Guest House, Inarajan Guam
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Judy Flores has been a part of the Guam community for over 50 years. She arrived in 1957 with her parents, who were school teachers, and her brother and two sisters. Her emersion into the Chamorro culture since that time is reflected in her paintings of community events and village scenes. She learned to speak the Chamorro language and married into the culture. She and her husband, Juan, have two grown children and seven grandchildren.
She has illustrated a local Chamorro-English-Japanese children's book, GRANDMA'S LOVE, and two books of
Guam legends, NANA'S LEGENDS OF GUAM, Volumes one and two.
Her works are popular gifts for visiting dignitaries, tourists and local residents. President Reagan received her batik painting of Inarajan as an official gift during his visit. Judy uses batik (wax resist dye on cloth) process as a fine art medium.
Her works are seen in many public places on
Guam, such as the Guam Hilton Hotel, the PIC Hotel Tower, the Judicial Building, the First Hawaiian Bank and the Santa Cruz branch of the Bank of Guam.

Judy's passion for
Guam's history and culture inspired her to pursue a Master's degree in Micronesian Studies, and then a PhD in the Arts of Oceania. Her research specialties include Pacific arts, primarily of Guam and Micronesia. Her on-going project is to revitalize her home village of Inarajan. More about the project, REVITALIZING HISTORIC INALAHAN, is available at www.historicinalahan.com.

Judy's art is available at Framed, etc. Gallery in Hagatna,
Guam; tel. 671-477-7873. It is also available on-line at http://batiksbyjudyflores.com.
For arts and cultural consulting services, write to judyflores@guam.net.

RESUME'

Judith (Judy) Selk Flores    
P.O. Box 2329   
Hagatna, Guam  96932

Tele:  (671) 828-8040
Judyflores.com
judyflores@guam.net

Born in Denver, Colorado
Lived in Inarajan, Guam since 1957; Speaks fluent Chamorro

Education:

PhD, University of East Anglia Sainsbury Research Unit,

      Norwich, UK - Arts of Oceania - July 1999

M.A. Micronesian Studies, University of Guam - 1996

M.A. Clothing & Textiles, University of Washington, 1970
B.A. Arts Education, College of Guam 1968

 

 Career History:

Judy’s career as a professional batik artist began in 1973 after experimenting with the medium of batik as a class project for her secondary art students.  She began exhibiting and selling at art fairs which proliferated in Guam in the 70s, then exhibited in CAHA gallery as a solo artist and in group shows for the next 20 years.  She conducted arts workshops through the Guam Visual Arts Guild annual Kaleidoscope of Arts Weekend of Arts workshops.  She began selling her art through Colorful Creations Gallery in 1985, and later at The Guam Gallery of Art in the Chamorro Village.  She participated in several Creative Hands art exhibits at Isla Center for the Arts at the University of Guam and at the Infinity Gallery in upper Tumon. 

Her sister, Amelia Selk, opened Framed Etc. Gallery in 2002, and is the exclusive agent for Judy’s original art.  Her art reproductions are available there and at other island shops, replicated in calendars, 3 book illustrations, and limited edition prints.  Centerstone Creations replicates her art in glass, hand painted by artists in the Chinese traditional reverse painting style, in glass latte, ornaments and candleholders. 

 Her original art can be seen in many professional offices, hotels and restaurants, such as the Hilton Resort & Spa, Pacific Islands Club, TakeCare Administrative offices, Bank of Guam, First Hawaiian Bank, Kings Restaurant, and Kaneshiro Orthodontist Clinic.  Her paintings are in homes all over the world, collected by people who have lived in Guam and wanted to have a fine art memory of their time spent on the island. 

 Judy has combined her love for Guam’s culture in her art.  Her batiks are rich, colorful illustrations of Guam’s historic past and cultural scenes from her childhood and continued residence in the historic village of Inalahan in southern Guam. 

 Mar 2008      President, Historic Inalahan Foundation
Oct. 2000 -2007  Executive Director, Gef Pa’go Chamorro Cultural Village
2002 – 2006    Adjunct professor, History of Guam, University of Guam
1996 - present Research Associate, Richard Flores Taitano - Micronesian Area   Research Center, University of Guam
Jan. - Dec. 1996    Development Officer, Guam Humanities Council
1986 - 1995     Folk Arts Coordinator, Guam Council on the Arts & Humanities Agency (CAHA)
1971 - 1981     Art Teacher, Inarajan Jr. and Sr. High Schools
1981 – present Professional Batik Artist

 Accomplishments:

 2000 – 2007 – As Executive Director of Gef Pa’go, secured and administered two Administration for Native American (ANA) grants totaling $900,000 from the Administration for Native Americans: 2000 – 2003, to re-organize and strengthen the organization; and 2004 – 2006, to provide on-the-job training for 5 interns to learn to repair and rebuild Inarajan’s historic homes; and 5 interns to learn hospitality and tourism services, from the Administration for Native Americans.  Included funding for after-school youth cultural programs.

 1991 - Initiated plans for Gef Pa'go Chamorro Cultural village, including the obtaining of grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Administration for Native Americans, the Guam Visitors Bureau, and Guam Preservation Trust totaling over $300,000; assisted the people of Inarajan to form a non-profit corporation to run the Village.  The successful Village maintains operations through gate receipts and cultural projects. It serves as a hands-on cultural education facility for school children. 

 

Publications

Pending 2010:  “Dress of the Chamorro”  Berg Enclyclopedia of World Dress and Fashion, Vol 7 – Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands.  Oxford, UK:  Berg Publishers

2007    “Arts and Architecture” entries in Guampedia, and online publication of the Guam Humanities Council at www.guampedia.org

2004.   “Folklore in the Classroom”.  Arlene Cohen & Clarisa Quan, (Eds.)  Libraries and Archives:  Pacific Islands Association of Libraries and Archives.  Selected papers from the joint conference, 10th Pacific Islands Assoc. of Libraries and Archives PIALA 2000 and 13th Annual Regional Language Arts Conference.  Guam:  PIALA

2002.  “Art and Identity in the Mariana Islands:  The reconstruction of ‘ancient’ Chamorro dance.”  Anita Herle, Nick Stanley, Karen Stevenson,        Robert L. Welsch, (Eds.) Pacific Art: Persistence, Change and Meaning.             Adelaide: Crawford House Publishing

2001.  “Introduction.”  Francisco B. Rabon.  Pa’a Taotao Tano’:  A way of Life,       People of the Land.  Guam:  Irensia Publishing

2001.  “Kantan Chamorrita revisited in the new millennium”.  Helen Reeves Lawrence and Don Niles, (eds.)Traditionalism and Modernity in the Music    and Dance of Oceania:  Essays in Honour of Barbara B. Smith.  University of Sydney.  Pp. 19-32

1998.  Guam” entry in The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music, Vol 9:  Australia and the Pacific Islands.  Adrienne L. Kaeppler and J. W. Love (Eds.) New York and London, Garland Publishing, Inc.  pp. 744-746

Community and Professional Service

2007    volunteer consultant  for Historic Inalahan Foundation

2003  to Present-  Governor’s appointee to the Guam Visitors Bureau.  Chairs the Culture and Heritage Committee 

2001-2005    Board Secretary of Haya Cultural Heritage & Preservation Development Foundation

Board Secretary, Pa’a Taotao Tano’ (Coalition of Chamorro dance groups)

2000-2003    Member, Chair, and Vice Chair successively, Guam Humanities Council,

1996 - Governor's appointee to the 1996 Festpac Task Force in charge of planning Guam's representation at the 7th Festival of Pacific Arts in Western Samoa.

1992 &

1988 - Administrator/organizer as Arts Council Folk Arts Coordinator, for Guam's participation in the 6th Festival of Pacific Arts held in Rarotonga, Cook Islands; and the 5th Festival in Townsville, Australia, 1988.

2000    Humanities Scholar for “Micronesian Women’s Art” project, directed by Dr. Kimberly Keelhing, contributing to exhibits, catalog, and workshops,


Awards

 Distinguished service to the arts from the National Governor’s Association, nominated from the Territory of Guam; one of 2 art awards nationwide by NGA in 2004.

Award of Distinction from the Governor of Guam for promoting and perpetuating Guam’s cultural heritage and traditional arts, 2002

Legislative Resolutions for cultural activities, awarded in 1988, 1997, and 2002

Guam Preservation Trust Research Grant, 1998

British Overseas Research Student Award (ORS), 1998





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What makes us unique?

An air-conditioned one-bedroom attached cottage tastefully decorated with a tropical seaside theme, situated in quiet, southern Guam.  The "real Guam" and Chamorro hospitality can be experienced in our southern villages.  We are a 45 minute drive from the Tumon tourist area and a 30 minute drive from the University of Guam.  Gef Pa'go Chamorro Cultural Village is just  2.5 miles away and Cocos Island Resort is 7 miles further south.  Talofofo Falls and the Jungle Boat Cruise are 15 minutes north.
 

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