Mexico
Contemporary Art World in Context
Mexico’s art scene is known worldwide. In this particularly challenging time, the dialogue between art and society testifies to the stresses and possibilities faced by the nation. While much production continues to be focused in Mexico City, work in other cities has received increasing attention and some of the best university programs for art studies (both theory and production) are rising up in these smaller sites such as Guanajuato. This seminar introduces participants to Mexico’s contemporary art world through direct engagement with artists and faculty working in the arts in and around Guanajuato.
Seminar participants will explore in social context, engage in dialogue with local faculty who are both teaching and practicing artists, and explore and analyze trends across diverse genres in Mexican art. The goal is to provide participants with a clear sense of “who’s who” right now in Mexican art and an understanding of how artistic production is affected by, and contributes to, ongoing social, cultural, and political debates.
During this seminar, we will focus on three cities in Central Mexico with notable artistic production. We begin in the lovely and quirky city of Guanajuato, a site of intense architectural beauty and home to the Universidad de Guanajuato’s increasingly renowned school of the arts. Lectures on the contemporary art scene complemented by various gallery visits and a hands-on activity in sound art, a specialty at the university, provide participants with a strong foundation in Mexico’s contemporary art scene. In nearby Querétaro, we will explore the colonial influence on Mexican art, interpreting and reflecting on the art presented in the galleries and museums in this larger colonial city. One of our excursions from this city will be to the Sierra to visit a rural project in artistic education. The seminar finishes in the city of Toluca (close to Mexico City), where we will spend a day with the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México’s art department, joining faculty for discussions, museum visits, and a cultural evening.
Locations
Guanajuato, Querétaro, and Toluca, Mexico
*Flight Notes
- Participants should fly into Guanajuato (BJX); there are currently direct flights from Houston, Dallas, Los Angeles, and Chicago.
- Participants will fly out of Toluca (flights pending/direct connections to Chicago, Houston, Las Vegas) or can choose to fly out of Mexico City, which is located 45 minutes from Toluca. We are happy to provide connection information for Mexico City departures, as well as logistical and site-seeing information for museums or other points of interest for those who decide to travel on.