Heritage: Latino
Arts & Culture
As in the case of all great art, the masterpieces of Latino art history transcend the particular times and places of their creation, and retain their power to stir the spirits of today's audiences. Art and artifacts produced in Mexico, Central and South America before the Spanish conquest are among the best known works of the early periods, simply because so many of them have been discovered. A quick survey of Pre-Conquest art before your visit will enhance your appreciation of it once you're here. Yet, even without any pre-knowledge, these extraordinarily mysterious works will take hold of even a first-time viewer-if they can be encountered on their own terms – powerful and beautiful depictions of and offerings to the Gods, Nature, and the Unknown. The Pre-Conquest imagination has enchanted artists and intrigued scholars for centuries. The volume and quality of what has survived is stunning, and much of it has found its way into public and private collections throughout California.
The Los Angeles Mexican Cultural Institute showcases artists from Mexico and the United States whose work crosses the cultural divide or specifically honors one or the other's cultural traditions. The institute supports a host of community activities in the L.A. area. The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) has an extensive collection of choice Pre-Conquest pieces. Art of the Charrería: A Mexican Tradition, celebrates the art, family tradition, passion, and culture of Mexico's national sport and it's enduring legacy in the United States at the Autry Museum of Western Heritage May through September 2002. The Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) in nearby Long Beach is the only art museum in the country dedicated exclusively to the exhibition of contemporary Latin American art. Focusing on Mexican, Central and South American art since World War II, its permanent collection includes painting and sculpture by Ecuadorian Eduardo F. Kingman, and Oaxacan-born artists Alejandro Santiago and Rufino Tamayo… A major exhibition, Folk Art of Mexico, is on display at San Diego's Mingei International Museum of Folk Arts. Ceramics, metal work, textiles, baskets, toys, and masks from the museum's permanent collection represent the living arts of Mexico. Axis Mexico, opening this fall at the San Diego Museum of Art, is a thematic survey featuring recent painting, sculpture, photography, installation, and video art, all examining contemporary Mexican life from a cosmopolitan perspective. The San Diego Museum of Man presents Hecho en Mexico, more than 600 pieces of handcrafted Mexican folk art, from May 2002 through February 2003…The Latino tradition in mural art lives in San Francisco's Precita Eyes Mural Arts & Visitors Center. Located in the Mission District, this non-profit, multipurpose arts organization is one of only three community mural centers in the country. On any given day, local children work on arts and crafts, artists draw from the figure, and professional muralists collaborate on new projects. Typical exhibitions at Galería de la Raza, an interdisciplinary space for art, thought, and activism, include conceptual photographic explorations of the Latino experience as well as video, poetry, and digital murals created by contemporary Latino artists. The Mexican Museum moves into its new home in San Francisco's burgeoning Yerba Buena arts district in the summer of 2004. Designed by acclaimed Mexican architect, Ricardo Legorreta, the museum's permanent collection includes more than 10,000 objects ranging from Pre-Conquest to Latino contemporary art…Based at California State University Sacramento, RAÍCES Grupo Folklorico performs and teaches traditional and contemporary Mexican dance styles at cultural events and schools throughout California and the Southwest. The Mexican Cultural Center of Northern California brings Mexican culture into the lives of Sacramento's residents and visitors by sponsoring a variety of folkloric events and performances.
Highlights
- Los Angeles:
- Los Angeles Mexican Cultural Institute (213.624.3660)
- Museum of Latin American Art (Long Beach) (562.437.1689)
- Sacramento:
- RAíCES Grupo Folklorico (916.394.9357)
- Mexican Cultural Center of Northern California (916.446.3691)
- San Diego:
- Mingei International Museum of Folk Arts (619.239.0003)
- San Diego Museum of Art (619.232.7931)
- San Francisco:
- Precita Eyes Mural Arts & Visitors Center (415.285.2287)
- Galería de la Raza (415.826.8009)
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