“Beyond Borders” talk is now available online. The talk features three artists from different regions, Abigail Reyes from El Salvador, Arshia Haq from Los Angeles, USA, and Liliana Hueso from Tijuana, MX, who talked with the curator of the exhibition “Borders of Freedom” Patricio Majano from Y.ES Contemporary. The talk addresses themes related to gender and freedom, considering the work of the artists, the region they live in and their personal stories. This was presented in collaboration with LACE, and with the support of CECUT and the Arts Faculty of UABC.
SELECTED ARTISTS FOR THE REGIONAL CURATED ART RESIDENCIES
Image: Rodrigo Guardado, from “Anotaciones” project. Courtesy the artist.
Salvadoran artists LAndrés Paz and Rodrigo Guardado have been selected for the Regional Curated Art Residencies in Visual Art and New Media. This project connects artists and curators from Central America, to collaborate in ongoing projects by the artists. Paz will be developing their project “Tres Lunas”, accompanied by curator Tatiana Muñóz from Costa Rica, and Guardado will work on his project “Anotaciones”, accompanied by curator Erika Martin from Costa Rica. Additionally, Salvadoran Natalia Domínguez will be curating the project “Espacios Habitables” by Alejandra Sequeira from Costa Rica, and Patricio Majano from YES Contemporary will be curating “Aureola Mental Factory” by artist Silvia García Solís from Costa Rica.
The Regional Curated Art Residencies in Visual Art and New Media is a program created by the Cultural Center of Spain in Costa Rica, in collaboration with YES Contemporary and other regional institutions, including Casa Caníbal (Costa Rica), Centro Cultural de España en El Salvador, La Revuelta (Guatemala), Ensayo y Error (El Salvador), espacio/C (Guatemala), Quorum Laboratorio Cultural (Panamá), and La Fábrica (El Salvador).
Read more about the residencies here.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
SIMÓN VEGA AT ART BASEL MIAMI BEACH
Artist Simón Vega, participated in Art Basel Online Viewing Room: Miami Beach, represented by Maia Contemporary. The online show was available from December 2-6. Additionally, Vega presented his work in a pop up exhibition in Casa Versalles, México, organized by the Mexican galleries originally selected for Art Basel Miami Beach. Vega presented works part of the series Tropical Space Projectos, which addresses the effects of the Cold War in Central America, creating pieces that allude to the space technology utilized during the “Space Race”, as well as the improvised architecture and structures from El Salvador and Central America.
See more of Simón Vega here.
Image: Simón Vega, “Paradise Colonialismo Space Suit”. Courtesy the artist and Maia Contemporary.
RAFAEL DÍAZ AT DINA MITRANI GALLERY DURING MIAMI ART WEEK
Salvadoran artist based in Madrid, Spain, Rafael Díaz, presented his “Anonymous” series at Dina Mitrani Gallery. The exhibition curated by YES Contemporary Councilmember Claire Breukel opened on November 25 and will be on view until December 31, 2020. Díaz, who is also a medical doctor, presents in this series portraits of his patients in which their faces are partially hidden, alluding to the confidentiality between Díaz and his patients. This project is supported by Consulate General of El Salvador in Miami and the Robert S. Wennett and Mario Cader-Frech Foundation.
See more about the exhibition here.
See more about Rafael Díaz here.
Image: Rafael Díaz, from the series "Anonymous”. Courtesy the artist.
JOHN RIVAS PRESENTS “LAS VOCES INSIDE OF ME” AT UNTITLED MIAMI
Salvadoran American artist John Rivas presented the solo exhibition “Las Voces Inside of Me” at Untitled Art Fair in Miami, represented by Latchkey Gallery. The exhibition was available from December 2-6 in the fair’s Online Viewing Room. Additionally, a special installation of work was displayed at LatchKey Gallery, NYC. Rivas presented a series of paintings that reference the Lanix culture and community.
See more about the exhibition here.
See more about John Rivas here.
Image: Painting by John Rovas. Courtesy the artist.
RICARDO HUEZO AT HARVEST, MANAGUA
Salvadoran/Nicaraguan artist Ricardo Huezo is presenting his solo exhibition “MHIEL” at Harvest, in Managua, Nicaragua, in collaboration with Galería Rancho Santana and Galería Andres Lazar. The exhibition opened on December 17, and presents a series of work presenting the juxtaposition of “sweet” and “sour” in reality, according to the artist’s perspective.
Image: “Estornudo batracio”. Ricardo Huezo. Courtesy the artist.
EL SALVADOR NEWS
ALEXIA MIRANDA AND JORGE ÁVALOS AT PERFORMANCE TALK
Salvadoran artist Alexia Miranda and writer Jorge Ávalos participated in a talk part of Contínuo Latidoamericano Performance Festival on November 30 via Facebook livestream. Other panelists included Ernesto Calvo (Costa Rica), Bayardo Blandino (Honduras), Pancho López (Mexico), Elia Arce (Costa Rica), Jorge de León (Guatemala), and Humberto Vélez (Panamá). In the event, they talked about performance in Central America, considering the current scene as well as its history.
Watch the talk here.
See more of Alexia Miranda here.
Image: Alexia Miranda. Courtesy the artist.
GABRIELA NOVOA CONDUCTS CREATIVE WORKSHOP
Salvadoran artist Gabriela Novoa is conducting “Laboratorio del deseo”, a creative workshop that focuses on sexual feminine pleasure, considering arts and psychology perspectives about this theme. The workshop took place on the 14, 16 and 18 of December at La Resi in San Salvador.
Image: Gabriela Novoa, "Relato sobre el abuso". Courtesy the artist.
ALEXIA MIRANDA IN CONVERSATION WITH NATALIA VOLIAKOVSKY
Salvadoran artist Alexia Miranda participated in the talk “Performance sin Cuerpo”, part of Deformes Biennial, on December 4. Miranda was in conversation with Natacha Voliakovsky (Argentina). The talk was moderated by Mila Berrios (Chile). The triennial features artists from Asia, Europe and Latin America whose work explores different preformative practices such as activism, ritual, sound performance, video performance, and more. See more of Alexia Miranda here.
Image: Alexia Miranda, “Debajo del agua”. Courtesy the artist.
ALEXIA MIRANDA PARTICIPATES IN A TALK HOSTED BY FUNDACIÓN PAIZ
Alexia Miranda was part of an online panel “El video: Documentación / Medio de Expresión” on December 8. The event was organized by Paiz Foundation as part of the programming of their online exhibition “Horizonte de Eventos”, and it addressed the role that video has had in Central America. Miranda was in conversation with other artists including Sandra Monterroso, Abel López, and Véronique Solar.
See more about the talk here.
Image: Alexia Miranda, “Reflexiones sobre la fragilidad II”. Courtesy the artist.
PRESS
BEATRIZ CORTEZ FEATURED IN HYPERMEDIA MAGAZINE
LA-based Salvadoran artist Beatriz Cortez was featured in Hypermedia Magazine. The article written by Mariela Yereguim, discusses the main ideas that are essential to Cortez’ work, for instance, the utilization of non linear temporalities, merging past and future in her works, and the use of materials and processes that relate to human labor.
Read the complete article here.
See more of Beatriz Cortez here.
Image: Beatriz Cortez, "Glacial Erratic". Courtesy the artist.
JOHN RIVAS AT I-D VICE
Artist John Rivas was featured in I-D Vice. The article written by Jack Sunnucks presents the work of the artist, highlighting its deep connection to the artist's family and Salvadoran heritage.
Read the complete article here.
Image: John Rivas. Photo by Matt Jones. Courtesy the artist.
SIMÓN VEGA FEATURED IN EL PAÍS
Salvadoran artist Simón Vega, was featured in El País, Mexico. The article talks about the initiative by 10 Mexican Galleries to create a show at Casa Versalles, Mexico City, which allowed to exhibit works originally selected for Art Basel Miami Beach. Vega's work was presented by Maia Contemporary.
Read the complete article here.
Image: Simón Vega, “Tropical Space Proyectos”. Courtesy the artist and Maia Contemporary.
ERNESTO POMA FEATURED IN EL PAÍS
Salvadoran collector Ernesto Poma was interviewed by Dani Levinas for El País. In the interview, Poma talks about his important collection of Latin American art, and how he started collecting, also sharing important views about art and the art market.
Read the article here.
Image: Ernesto Poma. Courtesy El País.
REVIEW
LOOKING BACK AT 2020: EL SALVADOR
By Patricio Majano
Images: Rafael Díaz, from the series “Salud Pública” (Public Health), 2020. Left: National emblem of El Salvador. Right: National emblem of USA. Courtesy the artist.
The events that took place in 2020 have changed our reality and reshaped all structures of our societies. The art world has been affected as well. The long term effects of the current crisis have been discussed widely. Amongst all the tragedy and setbacks, I would like to acknowledge some projects that rose above challenging times and became relevant beyond the pandemic.
One of the first projects that made sense during the pandemic was the series Salud Pública (Public Health) by Madrid-based Salvadoran artist Rafael Díaz. The project juxtaposes a black and yellow flag that has historically been used to signal a quarantined space, with the inverted flags of the countries affected by the pandemic. Salud Pública was shared mainly on Instagram. Each image was accompanied by a caption including the number of confirmed cases and deaths resulting from the virus at the time of the publication along with the text “We live in times where irresponsible politicians make decisions that directly affect our health and put our lives in danger”.
This act of protest utilized online platforms, which will become as important as the physicall spaces. Moreover, this project comes from Díaz’ medical practice, and charged with a genuine interest and knowledge in public health.
Migration and racism were other issues that were addressed by numerous artists, including Beatriz Cortez. Works like “Glacial Erratic”, presented at Frieze Sculpture in Rockefeller Center, New York, allowed the audience to reflect on migration and understand it as a natural phenomenon inherent to planet earth. Cortez created a handmade metal sculpture inspired in the glacial erratics that were brought to New York City by melting glaciers, hundreds of years ago. The artwork referenced migration before the human era and movement in different temporalities.
Image: Beatriz Cortez, "Glacial erratic". Courtesy the artist.
Beatriz also participated in “#XMAP: In Plain Sight” a collective project that protested against immigrant detention in the United States. For this project, Cortez wrote the phrase “No Cages No Jaulas” in Los Angeles sky, which was visible through an app. Additionally, she collaborated with institutions that support immigrant communities in the United States to write the phrase “Defund ICE” with chalk in a street in Los Angeles. Both interventions had a lot of press coverage, amplifying the impact of the message.
Image: Beatriz Cortez, "No cages No jaulas". Courtesy the artist.
The last piece I would like to mention was Yo te presto mi voz (I will lend you my voice), by Colectiva Amorales, a performance that narrates declarations of sexual abuse by professors to students in the University of El Salvador, acts that remain without any kind of consequences for the alleged abusers due to a system that favors the accused. This performance resonated throughout the lockdown, since many women were forced to live with their abusers. This action became more important than ever, when the president of El Salvador falsely stated that women were safer than before [1]. The performance was relevant as it provided alternatives to the deficient justice system in El Salvador and empowered the victims to denounce their abusers.
Image: Colectiva Amorales, "Yo te presto mi voz". Courtesy CCESV.
These pieces were important acts and gestures of protests to issues that were present before the pandemic, but that became more prominent in recent months. During this period of time, it was reassuring to notice that, despite the art community being highly impacted by this crisis, artists did not stop their important work highlighting, protesting against, and providing solutions to these relevant issues.
