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Arts of Resistance

Politics and the Past in Latin America

Look Closer

Arts of Resistance

Politics and the Past in Latin America

Look Closer

Arts of Resistance

Politics and the Past in Latin America

Dates

May 17, 2018 – September 30, 2018

Arts of Resistance: Politics and the Past in Latin America illustrates how communities in Latin America use traditional or historical art forms to express contemporary political realities.

Displaying art and performance by artists in Mexico, Guatemala, Peru, El Salvador, Ecuador and Chile, and paying special attention to marginalized communities, this exhibition explores the role of creativity during times of political turmoil.

Latin American culture and folkloric arts are already well known abroad but we’re inviting visitors to take a closer look, to understand the political and social significance of these artistic traditions. For example, one of the works on display will be a contemporary codex, or pictorial manuscript, from Mexico. Written using pre-Hispanic symbols, this work tells the story of the forced disappearance in 2014 of 43 students in Ayotzinapa, Mexico. This work connects pre-contact Mesoamerican peoples and the Spanish conquest with Neo-colonialism and racism in Mexico today.

This is a unique opportunity for visitors to learn about Latin American politics through the lens of contemporary art. This exhibition demonstrates how objects can embody important historical and cultural memories and has the potential to influence how Latin American art and culture are showcased in museums and galleries.

Curator: Laura Osorio Sunnucks

 

Image credits L-R: Casa de los Diablos, Mateo Martinez Barrera (pictured), photo by Fuyubi Nakamura. The San Isidro Mural, Olinda Silvano and Wilma Maynas (pictured), photo by Municipality of San Isidro, Lima. Tigua Valley, Eduardo Cayo Pilalumbo, Pablo Perez Martinez, photo by Alina Ilyasova.