Miradas
Mexican Art from the
Bank of America Collection

January 23 to August 30, 2009

At
The National Museum of Mexican Art
(National Museum of Mexican Art Website)
1852 W. 19th Street
Chicago, Illinois 60608
312.738.1503

Curated by Cesáreo Moreno
Public Relations: Angie Moreno

Susan Weinrebe
January 23, 2009

Drawing from the corporate art collection of the Bank of America, the latest exhibit at the National Museum of Mexican Art (NMMA), Miradas, is a landscape of 80 years’ work, by artists in the United States and Mexico.

Miradas, which translates several ways, including: views, sights, or glances, hints at one way to view the collection. It is a panoply of media, ranging from oils to bronze, prints and photography, with a broad spectrum of subjects. Rather than finding a unifying theme, not unusual in such collections, I viewed each work as a unique entity, rather than along a continuum of the whole.

Actually, this broad approach speaks to the mission and identity of the NMMA. Presenting Mexican culture sin fronteras (without borders), its art and programs cut a wide swath across topics and eras. They are easily accessible to the public, which is invited to attend without admission, thanks to Target funding. The museum, which is in the middle of a residential neighborhood, is a place where residents are welcome to drop in, as at the opening night reception for Miradas. However, the National Museum of Mexican Art, though intimate in size and location, also maintains its identity of being the largest Latino arts institution in the United States.

The galleries were packed with works by dozens of familiar artists, though the works themselves may not have been as popularly recognizable as the artists’ signatures. “Popol Vuh Stamps”, by Carlos Mérida, was a series of nine brightly-colored prints referencing Mayan mythology, and the first of any number of other works thematically using indigenous cultures as subject matter.

“Considered by many to be the father of modern Mexican Art,” Alfredo Ramos Martinez’ tempera and charcoal jigsaw image of “The Prisoner” was particularly moving. Deceptively simple in its flat and unembellished technique, the face of one man stares out from a sea of sombreros. He is utterly engulfed, and the surrounding hats stretch vastly on beyond their containing frame. It’s a piece that provokes conversation. Is he literally a person who’s under arrest, or is there something more? Is he a prisoner of his class and geography? Of a movement in which he’s caught? The plain face of a plain man, nearly subsumed by his surrounding fellows, still haunts

Frequently portraying physically imposing indigenous women, Francisco Zuñiga, was represented by several prints, the most powerful of which was “Soledad Reclining.” It hinted at the massive substance of the shrouded, sleeping form. Even with her face partially covered, the sleeping Soledad was a distinct individual rather than a type, resting from one could only guess what labor or rigors of her life.

Sally Gall’s eerie black and white photograph, “Thirst,” captures yearning and tenacity. The view of tree roots is angled upward towards the earth from far below the surface, as though Gall had been standing in a cenote. Tangled plant fiber, urging downward toward water and nourishment, looks otherworldly in its attenuated form. The split of realms, sky, earth, below ground, and the title, all speak to the will to live and, ultimately, to what happens after death.

As always, the museum presented a gem of a show, unique to its identity. Being there, with the family programs, tours, festivals, open reception, and welcoming atmosphere, I felt, once again, as though I’d been immersed in a little bit of Mexico.

Miradas Reception - Barb Schwarz
Courtesy of Susan Weinrebe

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Miradas Reception - John Klaus and Karen Swinehart
Courtesy of Susan Weinrebe

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Miradas Reception - John Klaus and Karen Swinehart
Courtesy of Susan Weinrebe

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Alfredo Ramos Martinez, (1871-1946)
"The Prisoner"
Tempera And Charcoal on Paper
Courtesy of the National Museum of Mexican Art

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Diego Rivera, (1886-1957)
"La Maestra/Los Frutos de la Escuela", 1932
Lithograph 80/100
Courtesy of the National Museum of Mexican Art

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Francisco Zuñiga, (1912-1998)
Soledad Acostada, 1973
Lithograph 80/100
Courtesy of the National Museum of Mexican Art

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Miradas Exhibit Brochure Cover
Courtesy of the National Museum of Mexican Art

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For more information, contact Dr. Roberta E. Zlokower at zlokower@bestweb.net