Mexicanisimo through Artists' Eyes

San Jose Museum of Art presents "Mexicanisimo through Artists' Eyes"

In a new exhibition this spring at the San Jose Museum of Art, Mexican and Mexican-American artists contrast the traditional with the cutting-edge, the high-brow with the low-brow. Mexicanisimo Through Artists' Eyes, on view March 30-September 23, 2012, presents works by artists who draw inspiration from Mexico's deep well of visual culture. Their references include folk art, popular culture, and vernacular craft traditions as well as contemporary idioms. This exhibition includes works by artists who enlist traditional, refined artisan's techniques (such as weaving and ceramics) to challenge today's mass-market consumer culture alongside the work of artists who transform the most expendable materials into art.

The exhibition will include works by artists who share roots in Mexico yet live and work across the United States and the globe, reflecting the energy and diversity of Silicon Valley: Natalia Anciso (Oakland, CA), Margarita Cabrera (El Paso, TX), Enrique Chagoya (San Francisco), Colectivo "La Malagua" (Puerto Vallarta, Mexico), Máximo González (Mexico City), Gabriel Kuri (Mexico City and Brussels, Belgium), Franco Mondini-Ruiz (San Antonio, TX), Betsabeé Romero (Mexico City), and Jamex and Einar de la Torre (San Diego, CA, and Ensenada, Mexico).

Kristen Evangelista, director of the University Galleries, William Patterson University, Wayne, New Jersey, and former associate curator at SJMA, is guest curator of the exhibition.

"Mexican folk art, craft, and popular culture are a familiar visual vocabulary, and these artists offer a contemporary take on Mexico's varied and vibrant cultural expressions," said Evangelista. "They reclaim traditional symbols, many of which have been absorbed into the superficial realm of the mass tourist trade. By paying homage to the imagery of tradition-without either nostalgia or cynicism-they advance a deeper understanding of Mexican culture, identity, and history."

Mexicanisimo through Artists' Eyes is sponsored by Bank of America, the James Irvine Foundation, the Myra Reinhard Family Foundation, The Christensen Fund, University Art, and the Consulado General de México.