A Taste of Art
Protest art in Mexico
Art has no boundaries. Art is freedom. Art is a remnant that leaves identity in its path, but which constantly moves, dissolves and transforms itself in other environments. Art gives us the ability to connect with one another despite language barriers and cultural differences.
Art takes a creative eye and the audacity to draw outside the lines to turn a symbol of division into a message of unity. But was is the protest art in Mexico?
Protest art is the creative works produced by activists and social movements. Social movements produce such works as the signs, banners, posters, and other printed materials used to convey a particular cause or message. Protest art spotlights issues that need attention, using basic rules of design and carefully chosen words to elicit both shock and empathy.
Protest art and design help communicate issues through powerful imagery supported by bold, straightforward typography. Let's take a look at the modern protest art in Mexico.
Protest art and design help communicate issues through powerful imagery supported by bold, straightforward typography. Let's take a look at the modern protest art in Mexico.
Mexican Protest Art
Mexico has a long history of revolutionary art. Especially well-known are the revolution-era muralists from the early 20th century, such as Rivera, Orozco and Siqueiros. These artists painted masterpieces in public spaces, aiming to create a public and accessible visual dialogue with the Mexican people.
Today, in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca, a new street art phenomenon has taken root. When walking around Oaxaca City, the quality of art that can be found in the streets is striking. More than just beautifying these spaces, many of the pieces provide pointed sociopolitical commentary. They remind passers-by of some of the worst problems Oaxaca, and Mexico more generally, are facing right now – political repression, grinding poverty, the perils of migration, threats to Indigenous people and environmental damage, to name a few. They also point to solutions and offer inspiration to take action.
Well-known Oaxacan artist Yescka explains the importance of graffiti and street art – "It's an attempt to reintegrate art into society. I feel that art right now is standing outside society because it belongs to a limited sector of galleries, intellectuals and museums. I believe art is for everybody and that's why we're trying to create a link, so that the people can get in touch with art in their everyday lives again."
Mexico has a long history of revolutionary art. Especially well-known are the revolution-era muralists from the early 20th century, such as Rivera, Orozco and Siqueiros. These artists painted masterpieces in public spaces, aiming to create a public and accessible visual dialogue with the Mexican people.
Today, in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca, a new street art phenomenon has taken root. When walking around Oaxaca City, the quality of art that can be found in the streets is striking. More than just beautifying these spaces, many of the pieces provide pointed sociopolitical commentary. They remind passers-by of some of the worst problems Oaxaca, and Mexico more generally, are facing right now – political repression, grinding poverty, the perils of migration, threats to Indigenous people and environmental damage, to name a few. They also point to solutions and offer inspiration to take action.
Well-known Oaxacan artist Yescka explains the importance of graffiti and street art – "It's an attempt to reintegrate art into society. I feel that art right now is standing outside society because it belongs to a limited sector of galleries, intellectuals and museums. I believe art is for everybody and that's why we're trying to create a link, so that the people can get in touch with art in their everyday lives again."
The story of the uprise in Oaxaca
Every year, as schools close down for the summer, teachers in Oaxaca strike to negotiate increased wages and better school supplies, in a tradition dating back to 1981. Unlike in previous years, however, in June 2006 thousands of police officers in riot gear were sent by the governor to break the strike, using tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the teachers' protest camp in the city centre. Scores of people were injured in the process.
The violent crackdown sparked a public backlash against the state government, as people took to the streets in support of the teachers. In many neighbourhoods across the city, barricades were set up to control the movement of police and paramilitary groups. Mainstream radio stations were taken over by protesters as a way to disseminate information widely. During this time, street art was used to condemn the abuses of power that had become so prevalent in the troubled state and to publicly point to a shared reality of oppression.
In October 2006, thousands of federal police were sent to Oaxaca to regain control of the city. Three people were killed that same day. By the end of November, a major crackdown in the city centre saw the last encampments and barricades torn down by the Federal Preventative Police, marking the end of the teachers' occupation. Protesters and bystanders alike were assaulted, arrested and in some cases disappeared and tortured, with no way to tell family members where they were.
For a few months the protests died down, but by the time the school year ended again in May 2007, the street art scene in Oaxaca exploded, amid ongoing peaceful protests aimed at the state government. In the 2009 book Protest Graffiti Mexico: Oaxaca, renowned Oaxacan-born singer Lila Downs said of the burgeoning street art movement at that time: "As repression continues, the symbols become stronger, and they come to life."
Every year, as schools close down for the summer, teachers in Oaxaca strike to negotiate increased wages and better school supplies, in a tradition dating back to 1981. Unlike in previous years, however, in June 2006 thousands of police officers in riot gear were sent by the governor to break the strike, using tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the teachers' protest camp in the city centre. Scores of people were injured in the process.
The violent crackdown sparked a public backlash against the state government, as people took to the streets in support of the teachers. In many neighbourhoods across the city, barricades were set up to control the movement of police and paramilitary groups. Mainstream radio stations were taken over by protesters as a way to disseminate information widely. During this time, street art was used to condemn the abuses of power that had become so prevalent in the troubled state and to publicly point to a shared reality of oppression.
In October 2006, thousands of federal police were sent to Oaxaca to regain control of the city. Three people were killed that same day. By the end of November, a major crackdown in the city centre saw the last encampments and barricades torn down by the Federal Preventative Police, marking the end of the teachers' occupation. Protesters and bystanders alike were assaulted, arrested and in some cases disappeared and tortured, with no way to tell family members where they were.
For a few months the protests died down, but by the time the school year ended again in May 2007, the street art scene in Oaxaca exploded, amid ongoing peaceful protests aimed at the state government. In the 2009 book Protest Graffiti Mexico: Oaxaca, renowned Oaxacan-born singer Lila Downs said of the burgeoning street art movement at that time: "As repression continues, the symbols become stronger, and they come to life."
Resistance artists in Oaxaca
Yescka
Yescka is a Oaxacan street artist and founder of the political art collective ASARO (Assembly of Revolutionary Artists of Oaxaca).
In 1998, at the age of 15, Yescka began to paint graffiti on the streets of Oaxaca and later entered the School of Fine Arts of the Autonomous University Benito Juárez. In 2006 when a very large political-social movement arose in Oaxaca, Yescka took up street art to express the social disagreement that exists in his city.
The same year Yescka joined various artists who formed one of the most prominent groups in Oaxaca, ASARO (Assembly of Revolutionary Artists of Oaxaca), in order to make art more committed to society in which their feelings and disagreement are reflected. Yescka keeps working using different techniques to create his work (graffiti, stencil, acrylic, etc.).
Yescka
Yescka is a Oaxacan street artist and founder of the political art collective ASARO (Assembly of Revolutionary Artists of Oaxaca).
In 1998, at the age of 15, Yescka began to paint graffiti on the streets of Oaxaca and later entered the School of Fine Arts of the Autonomous University Benito Juárez. In 2006 when a very large political-social movement arose in Oaxaca, Yescka took up street art to express the social disagreement that exists in his city.
The same year Yescka joined various artists who formed one of the most prominent groups in Oaxaca, ASARO (Assembly of Revolutionary Artists of Oaxaca), in order to make art more committed to society in which their feelings and disagreement are reflected. Yescka keeps working using different techniques to create his work (graffiti, stencil, acrylic, etc.).
Lapistola
Lapistola is an art collective in Oaxaca created by Roberto Arturo, Rosario Martínez and Yankel Balderas in 2006 during the Oaxacan uprising. At the beginning, Roberto Arturo and Rosario Martínez were creating designs for t-shirts, banners and posters in support of the protests. Even after the uprising had officially been quelled, the duo continued designing and printing t-shirts for the movement. In 2007, they formed the collective Lapiztola, a play on the Spanish words lápiz (pencil) and pistola (gun), with Yankel, an architect and graffiti artist who had also been active during the 2006 protests.
Like many other Oaxacan street artists, the members of Lapiztola have showcased their work at numerous exhibitions in Mexico and abroad. An adaptation of a mural titled El maíz en nuestra vida (Corn in our lives), originally painted for a festival in Cuba, recently found its way onto the streets of Oaxaca. The piece depicts a young woman aiming a rifle at scientists dressed in white hazmat suits, leaning over long stalks of corn. The piece links in with current protests across Mexico, the birthplace of maize, against the widespread introduction of Monsanto's genetically modified corn.
Since that time their work has become iconic, and easily identifiable through their large works that adorn the walls of Guelaguetza in Los Angeles and Agave Uptown in Oakland.
Lapistola is an art collective in Oaxaca created by Roberto Arturo, Rosario Martínez and Yankel Balderas in 2006 during the Oaxacan uprising. At the beginning, Roberto Arturo and Rosario Martínez were creating designs for t-shirts, banners and posters in support of the protests. Even after the uprising had officially been quelled, the duo continued designing and printing t-shirts for the movement. In 2007, they formed the collective Lapiztola, a play on the Spanish words lápiz (pencil) and pistola (gun), with Yankel, an architect and graffiti artist who had also been active during the 2006 protests.
Like many other Oaxacan street artists, the members of Lapiztola have showcased their work at numerous exhibitions in Mexico and abroad. An adaptation of a mural titled El maíz en nuestra vida (Corn in our lives), originally painted for a festival in Cuba, recently found its way onto the streets of Oaxaca. The piece depicts a young woman aiming a rifle at scientists dressed in white hazmat suits, leaning over long stalks of corn. The piece links in with current protests across Mexico, the birthplace of maize, against the widespread introduction of Monsanto's genetically modified corn.
Since that time their work has become iconic, and easily identifiable through their large works that adorn the walls of Guelaguetza in Los Angeles and Agave Uptown in Oakland.
Gran Om is differently one of the most popular artists and designers in Mexico famous for his political prints, contemporary gig posters and social political theme murals.
Together with his friend illustration artist Kloer they design prints and paint murals that affect the life of people in the communities leaving a rich commentary on today's social and political issues: the fight of the indigenous people for their land, women rights, the collapse of the political system.
While being exhibited in the USA and Mexico, Gran Om keeps showing the contemporary aesthetics of design and street art through his works.
Together with his friend illustration artist Kloer they design prints and paint murals that affect the life of people in the communities leaving a rich commentary on today's social and political issues: the fight of the indigenous people for their land, women rights, the collapse of the political system.
While being exhibited in the USA and Mexico, Gran Om keeps showing the contemporary aesthetics of design and street art through his works.
43 students missing protest art
On September 26, 2014, 43 students went missing from Iguala, Mexico. Authorities say the students were heading to a protest when they disappeared. Jose Angel, one of those missing, called his father in a panic, saying they were being attacked by police. Since that night, no one has heard from Angel or the other students -- missing and feared dead.
Artists, upset with local authorities' lack of answers and demanding justice, picked up brushes and began painting in protest.
On September 26, 2014, 43 students went missing from Iguala, Mexico. Authorities say the students were heading to a protest when they disappeared. Jose Angel, one of those missing, called his father in a panic, saying they were being attacked by police. Since that night, no one has heard from Angel or the other students -- missing and feared dead.
Artists, upset with local authorities' lack of answers and demanding justice, picked up brushes and began painting in protest.
Border Art
Whether in Cold War–era Berlin or present-day West Bank, border walls have long been used to stop people whose race, religion, economic status, or ideology have been unwelcome. But wherever anti-immigration politicians see opportunity, artists see canvas.
Two professors from California transformed a part of the U.S.-Mexico border into a tool for the connection rather than separation. Children from both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border were playing together on three bright-pink seesaws placed through the fence in Sunland Park, New Mexico (near El Paso, Texas), and Ciudad Juárez, Mexico.
The temporary art project, known as the "Teeter-Totter Wall," was first dreamed up in 2009 by Ronald Rael, an architecture professor, and an interior design associate professor Virginia San Fratello. After 10 years of conceptualizing, the installation came to life with Mexican and U.S. Border Patrol agents overseeing its construction at the highly politicized border. When the temporary seesaws were put in place, families on both sides of the wall gathered to play for approximately 30 minutes, capturing videos and photos that have since been widely shared across social media.
Whether in Cold War–era Berlin or present-day West Bank, border walls have long been used to stop people whose race, religion, economic status, or ideology have been unwelcome. But wherever anti-immigration politicians see opportunity, artists see canvas.
Two professors from California transformed a part of the U.S.-Mexico border into a tool for the connection rather than separation. Children from both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border were playing together on three bright-pink seesaws placed through the fence in Sunland Park, New Mexico (near El Paso, Texas), and Ciudad Juárez, Mexico.
The temporary art project, known as the "Teeter-Totter Wall," was first dreamed up in 2009 by Ronald Rael, an architecture professor, and an interior design associate professor Virginia San Fratello. After 10 years of conceptualizing, the installation came to life with Mexican and U.S. Border Patrol agents overseeing its construction at the highly politicized border. When the temporary seesaws were put in place, families on both sides of the wall gathered to play for approximately 30 minutes, capturing videos and photos that have since been widely shared across social media.
The San Ysidro port of entry that connects Tijuana and San Diego is the busiest land border crossing in the world. Some 100 years ago, this boundary was marked by little more than flimsy cattle fencing. Today, the border wall's rusting steel bars extend 300 feet into the Pacific Ocean. In 2011, Mexican artist Ana Teresa Fernandez "erased" the border by painting the fence to blend into the sea, sand, and sky (pictured at top).
Just inland, Enrique Chiu is aiming to cover the length of the rest of the existing U.S./Mexico boundary wall with murals created by volunteers, artists, and community groups in border towns across the Southwest. Covering a distance of more than a mile and counting, Chiu's Mural de la Hermandad (Brotherhood Mural) is gunning for the title of longest mural in the world.
We can look forward to the brilliant ways artists use this unfortunate situation to inspire change. The hope is that they make a difference — or at least carry on the tradition of leaving evidence of the efforts to fight for one's rights.
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