BraveBirdy

A few weeks back, around March 18th to 28th, I had the opportunity to visit the beautiful historic Spanish town of San Luis Potosi in Mexico. The town itself is a gem of architecture, with gorgeous carved churches, stunning stone statues, and absolutely wonderful Spanish housing (from the conquest era). 

Among these great sights was the rather large Museo Arte Contemporáneo de San Luis Potosí.

(The museum at the central square of San Luis Potosi, Mexico)

I got very lucky that day, because lo and behold there was a popular exhibition of an artist by the name of Edgar Flores. Flores, who goes by the name Sanes, is a Mexican born artist that graduated from the Universidad Autónoma de México with a degree in graphic design. Sanes' creations are highly influenced by his native Mexican culture, and this is quite apparent in his work. 

The show was titled "Primitivo", or "Primitive" in English, and centered around the idea that humanity lives in a world that values achievements and technology, rather than the basics of life. However, humans are quite primitive in that sense as well, since the need to survive and achieve will cause individuals to stop at nothing to achieve their desires (murdering others, taking over territory, stealing, etc..)

(The Political Swindler , 2014)

The first piece that caught my attention was "The Political Swindler2". The image is striking because it depicts a traditional red Mexican coyote mask over a very rigid man in a suit. At first glance, without knowing his subject matter, I thought about the image representing a type of "wolf in sheeps clothing" theme. When I finally translated the description of the work, I realized that the figure is a symbol for the Mexican government and how they covered up the kidnapping and murder of 42 Mexican students. Sanes was reacting to how the government sat idly by as its own military conducted horrific acts of violence.

The work is bold, as if daring you to challenge it, and very intimidating to look at. 

(People vs People, 2014)

The next image that I came across was the dramatic "People vs People". Sanes incorporates a bold red colour to enhance the intensity of the overall scene. The two figures are once again represented by Mayan imagery, with the coyote masks and the fragmented faces. The piece speaks to the fact that humanity is killing itself by turning on its own. Sanes wrote that the top figure represented the government and the bottom represented the people, another reaction to the kidnapping and murder of the 42 students.

Overall, I found the gallery quite immersive. Sanes uses incredibly bold colours that really call for you to look at the piece in its entirety. The Mexican culture that is present in his works is quite interesting to me, as I absolutely love the folk tales of the ancient Mayans and Aztecs. The work was hung rather basically around the rooms, with large frames, as some of these pieces were 58 x 46 inches in size. 

The one thing I would've liked at the exhibit is different lighting. The lighting was very basic, white light, and I feel as though if it had been tinted or focused only on the paintings and not the room, the dramatic effect of the paintings would've increased.

But alas, the fact that the exhibit talked about liars and decievers in governement while being located within a conquered Spanish city really added a flavour to his themes.