Chicano art in Mexico City

Frank Romero

's “ The Closing of Whittier Boulevard ”, portrays the scenario, the characters, color, contradictions, and the protest tone that characterized the fight between the Los Angeles police and the inhabitants of Mexican origin, which happened 50 years ago.

This painting created by Romero in 1984, is one of the greatest examples of Chicano art in history, as it reflects an aesthetic, the social tension, and the strength of their movement. This piece will be in Mexico as part of the exhibition “Bridges in times of walls” (Puentes en época de muros) , that will be inaugurated on September 21 at the Carrillo Gil Art Museum.

“Bridges in times of walls” will include works from some of the most important Chicano artists ; you will be able to appreciate the work of the group known as the “Four”: Carlos Almaraz, Roberto “Beto” de la Rocha, Gilbert “Magú” Luján, and Romero himself; as well as pieces from Patssi Valdez, Yolanda González, Salomón Huerta, Ana Serrano, Cindy Santos Bravo, and José Ramírez.

The 80 pieces are were painted between the 70s and 2018, and most of them are by artists of Mexican origin , born in the US. Their paintings represent several generations and portray recurrent themes about society, migration, the Mexican heritage, and the life of Mexicans living in the US.

The foundation of the exhibition is the AltaMed Health Services collection founded and run by Cástulo de la Rocha, businessman, and art collector, who supported, was part of the fight and was a friend of the artists and creators of the Chicano movement in the 70s.

“These works were very important 50 years ago when Frank Romero, Carlos Alamaraz, Beto de la Rocha, ”Magú”, Harry Gamboa, and Patssi Valdez began painting at 16, 17, 18 years old; these are still relevant today. Those same issues are still here, they affect us one way or another, because what is heard in Washington D.C., I can see it in these paintings”, said the businessman during the interview, who visited Mexico last week, along with the former Los Angeles mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa, with the aim to promote cultural links between both cities.

The exhibition will be in Mexico to emphasize the dialogue between different artist generations of Mexican origin, with the purpose to be a bridge that diffuses the art of these painters, and that highlights what both countries have in common, rather than their differences.

“Politics and racism aren't exclusive of Donald Trump , we've seen it in the US for many years, and those fights are expressed in the paintings”, he says.

For me, what is interesting about Chicano art is that its roots come from what we call The Chicano Movement , which happened at the same time that the civil movement organized by the African-American community took place, led by Martin Luther King . I lived that experience, I was one of those young boys. The Chicano art, the writers, the poets, expressed the community's opinion. There have always been Mexican painters in the US , but it was very important and the generations that followed have seen its influence, which was a political movement looking for justice, looking for ways to eliminate discrimination. Historically, there was been a system of racism in the US”.

These pieces were done inside a personal and social debate for identity, a debate that still exists today. De la Rocha says that: “We're not Americans, we aren't equal to the majority of the American population, and at the same time, in Mexico they call us “pochos”, they say we're not Mexican, that we're rejecting the country, that we don't speak Spanish properly. And we find ourselves in between two worlds. But during that, the word “Chicano” was a demanding cry”.

For the art collector, it's important that these pieces are not regarded as minor art: This is an expression from the Chicano community in the US, but it's also an expression of American art, it's not something isolated. I hope that this kind of art is recognized in Mexico someday”.

De la Rocha says that the pieces from new artists: “express the same ideas and aspirations in our community, the same Carlos Almaraz, Frank Romero, and Gamboa expressed 30 or 40 years ago”. An example is Ana Serrano.

When asked what are the changes he has noticed, he says that the styles and techniques have changed, but not the conditions.

There's poverty, but there's also development in communities of Mexican origin, for example, politicians from Mexican origin who have had public positions in Los Angeles and California: Antonio Villaraigosa, as mayor, and Kevin de León, State Senator, and that's why he thinks that there's work to do in the long run. In 10 years. Art gives the opportunity to look for dialogue, to look for ways to learn about each other. In these paintings you can see our wishes, our fights, our aspirations, what we've been through in the US; the paintings show is what we have in common, not our differences”.

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