Art from the Americas on display around the U.S.

Abu Ghraib 67 by Fernando Botero

Did you know that several museums around the U.S. are prominently displaying art from Latin American artists? With the weekend upon us it may be a good idea to check out some of the following exhibits before they close:

* This Saturday is the last day to see the U.S. debut of Colombian artist Fernando Botero’s exhibit of art inspired by the scandal in Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison. New York City’s Marlborough Gallery is displaying the collection of over 45 paintings and drawings that can be considered as “his strongest statement of outrage against human violence.” Certainly Botero’s works in this exhibit are powerful and arresting regardless of your opinions regarding the conflict in Iraq.

• The Marlborough Gallery is located at 40 West 57^th Street in Manhattan. For more information please check out their website.

* The Philadelphia Museum of Art gathered works from museums in Mexico City and Los Angeles in order to present “Tesoros,” a major exhibit of art from the Spanish and Portuguese colonial period in the Americas. One art critic praised how the art in shown in the exhibit “represents a distinctive amalgam of ingredients that includes indigenous media and techniques as well as prominent influences from Asia (primarily China, Japan and the Philippines)”. “Tesoros” brilliantly demonstrates the multi-faceted nature of Latin American art even if it’s from a period lacking mass appeal.

• “Tesoros” runs from now until December 31^st at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, located on 26^th Street and Parkway.

* Last week, the Museum of Latin American Art in Long Beach, California opened their feature exhibition on contemporary Cuban art entitled “Unbroken Ties: Dialogues in Cuban Art.” “Unbroken Ties” covers various different forms of art from nearly 40 Cuban artists including several living in exile. As Guest Curator Jorge Santis observed, the exhibition “demonstrates that neither time nor distance can erase the spiritual, behavioral and cultural linkage that exists between compatriots.”

• “Unbroken Ties: Dialogues in Cuban Art” will be shown until March 4, 2007 at the Museum of Latin American Art at 628 Alamitos Avenue in Long Beach

* ‘Good things come in small packages’ would be the best way to describe the “Mapping Nativity” exhibit at Denver’s Museo de las Américas. The exhibit recreates over 130 versions of the nativity scene from 18 Latin American countries using a myriad of items. Much like snowflakes no two nativity scenes are the same and they aptly represent the originality of Latin American art.

• “Mapping Nativity” is located at the Museo de las Américas (861 Santa Fe Drive in Denver) and the exhibit runs until December 31^st

*Though the Day of the Dead was commemorated a few weeks ago, Chicago’s Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum is running an exhibit on art related to that day. Local as well as Mexican artists display their works documenting different ways of observing the Day of the Dead and how important it is to Latin American culture. Vaya con Dios.

• “Rooted in Tradition” runs until December 10^th and is held at Chicago’s Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum located at 1852 West 19^th Street.

* In a city well-known for galleries on South Beach and art deco architecture it’s quite a surprise to see note that one of the best kept collections of art is at a public university. Such was the case at Miami Dade College which hosted an exhibit of over 1200 pieces of art called “A Well-Kept Secret: 40 Years of Collecting at MDC”. Included among works by Andy Warhol and Robert Rauschenberg was Latin American art collected in the 1970s from the likes of Mexico’s José Luis Cuevas and Venezuelan sculptor Jesús Soto.

None of the above-mentioned museums are near you? No need to worry as LANIC’s website on art has dozens of links of galleries and museums from around the Hemisphere that showcase art from the Americas.

Image- Marlborough Gallery

Tags-Latin America, art