The Brooklyn Museum, in New York City, became a space to showcase the work of little-known Latina artists

"Radical Women: Latin American art, 1960-1985" is the name of a new exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum, where the contributions to modern art carried out by different female artists from Latin America during this period, characterized by conceptual and aesthetic experimentation. With a collection of works by 123 artists from 15 countries, the exhibition focuses on the use of the female body for social criticism and artistic expression. Many of the works presented were carried out under very harsh social and political conditions, derived from the interventions of the United States in South and Central America.

Leer en español: Mujeres Radicales: la exhibición de las artistas latinas que se toman Brooklyn

The exhibition includes works by Lygia Page, Ana Mendieta, and Marta Minujín, as well as works by other artists from the region who have not enjoyed the same fame, such as the Colombian sculptor, Feliza Bursztyn; the Peruvian composer, choreographer and activist, Victoria Santa Cruz; the Cuban abstract painter, Zilia Sánchez; among others. The artists used different techniques and means to create their works and that is why in the exhibition you can find paintings, photographs, sculptures, videos, and performance.

"Radical Women" had already been presented at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles during 2017, and it is the product of six years of research by curators Cecilia Fajardo-Hill and Andrea Giunta, who were given the task of presenting artists whose work had been forgotten, overlooked or simply not as studied as other artists of their time. Even so, these artists contributed to the cultural feminist movement of that time, despite being marginalized for being Latin American and for being women.

Time before he appeared in Los Angeles, the Brooklyn Museum had already been interested in the project. Fajardo-Hill presented the proposal for the exhibition in 2010, due to its importance and the broadening of knowledge of Latina women in the art world.

In an interview with Artnet News, Catherine J. Morris, co-curator of the exhibition in Brooklyn, mentioned that it was an intimidating exhibition to be composed of many artists who are not well known, but also believes that this is one of its charms, because instead of presenting 120 artists who are already known by the world, it presents you 120 new artists with a completely different story.

Despite being based on the Los Angeles exhibition, the Brooklyn Museum presented new opportunities to tell stories, according to Andrea Giunta. The space of the museum is larger, which allowed a reconfiguration of the themes of the works and new connections between artists. According to the curators, those who saw the works in Los Angeles, will have much to discover in the Brooklyn exhibit.

To increase the interest of the people of New York, the Brooklyn iteration added works by four Latin artists based in this American city: Sophie Rivera, Marta Moreno Vega, Sara Gómez, and Ester Hernández.

The exhibition opened its doors on April 13, 2018 and will be open to the public until July 22, 2018.

Latin American Post | Alan Rosas González

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