Revolutionary Art

Contemporary prints from Mexican collectives counter brutal realities.

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It can be difficult to counter brutality with beauty, constant struggle with unwavering hope, and relentless oppression with fierce tenacity. Yet, this is exactly what’s achieved by an exhibition of graphic work by Mexican artists at the Penticton Art Gallery in the B.C. Interior.

The show, A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words, on view until Sept. 17, features extraordinary work from two leading artist collectives in Oaxaca: Colectivo Subterráneos and Taller Artístico Comunitario. These collectives bring together art students and street artists to increase awareness of social issues, stimulate community involvement and generate social change through art. 

Political unrest, rampant social discord and government crackdowns in 2006 led to a movement of street art and printmaking in Oaxaca, as well as a proliferation of art collectives. These collectives have responded to censorship and cultural erasure with admirable determination that has swelled support locally and internationally.

Subterráneos uses graphic art and murals to illuminate social problems “hidden from the sunlight.” Its manifesto says: “We exist because we resist. For the oppressed, for the invisible … we exist.” The commitment to these aims is evident in the stark black-and-white prints installed on the gallery’s brightly coloured walls.

The images, rooted in lived experiences of inequity and injustice, radiate urgency and honesty. It can be hard to look at faces and scenes that reveal the trauma and turmoil of oppressed people on exploited lands. It’s equally difficult to quell the surge of emotion that accompanies such portrayals of injustice. This show captures all this in exquisite detail, rendering pain as powerful art, and importantly, issuing a call to action. 

One piece in the show is from Diaspora Subterráneos in Mexico, a mural project by Subterráneos that seeks to make visible the presence of Afro-descendants in Mexico. It evokes compassion and emanates strength via the unflinching gaze of a mother breastfeeding her child. 

In They Were Going to Throw Him Down the Nopalera, the sombre reality and personal consequences of activism are crystal clear. The caption reads: “My magical Mexico where if you don’t show up everyone expects the worst, and the worst is formed by the reality we live each day.”

The exhibition reflects an artistic movement rooted in various historical moments, whether the genocide of Indigenous people or the forced migration of Black slaves during the Spanish conquest, as well as brutal political regimes and the exploitation of natural resources by multinational companies. The artists skilfully use their work as an instrument of demonstration, protest and remembrance. As Taller Artístico Comunitario states: “We cannot allow time and passivity to infect us with amnesia.”

The show aligns well with the gallery’s mandate to engage the community in global issues while supporting cultural and gender diversity and Indigenous artists. To deepen the collaboration, curator Paul Crawford invited two Subterráneos artists to help install the exhibition and give printmaking workshops to local artists. 

Beyond the gallery, several works are displayed on the streets of Penticton, offering revolutionary energy as a catalyst for public discourse on social change. For instance, an image on the Cannery Brewing building downtown depicts a girl taking aim with a slingshot. The lower half of her face is covered by a bandana but the fortitude in her eyes is unmistakable. The caption is equally full of resolve: “… when the revolution calls, there is no time to arm yourself with complications and formalities. A frying pan, a machete or a slingshot is enough.” 

The brilliant works in this show honour truth, memory and justice by bringing to light an array of social and political problems that have long plagued Oaxaca. But such issues transcend geography. While this show can be viewed as a graphic history of Oaxaca, it also offers a pathway to a more just and inclusive future. ■

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words – Art and Activism: Contemporary Printmaking from Oaxaca, Mexico at the Penticton Art Gallery from July 8 to Sept. 17, 2022.

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Penticton Art Gallery

199 Marina Way, Penticton, British Columbia V2A 1H5

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