Let's start with this: “A Century of Art in Latin America” is not comprehensive.
But it would be hard to be comprehensive when you’re looking at something as abstract and debated as what encompasses Latin America — both where its geographic and cultural borders are drawn — over just 100 years.
Nevertheless, the Denver Art Museum takes on this challenge with its latest exhibit, “A Century of Art in Latin America.”
Museum curator Raphael Fonseca said that no exhibit is fully complete when trying to represent what Latin America is.
He said there would always be people who wouldn’t see themselves represented. They’d ask where the Brazilian or Honduran artists were, or why Mexican artists had more pieces than those from other cultures. According to him, that’s a risk in every exhibit.
But, that doesn’t make the dialogue between artists, cultures, and artwork any less valuable.
“It's interesting to take an artist from Guatemala, connect to someone from Chile, and then with someone from Argentina,” Fonseca said. “I feel that sometimes in Latin American Studies and sometimes Latin American art history miss these connections between plays.”
One of its highlighted pieces is from Tessa Mars, a Haitian artist, presented close to works from Mexican icon Diego Rivera and Venezuelan artist Carlos Cruz-Diez. It’s a statement that welcomes the debate of whether the Caribbean region belongs to Latin America — let alone their artists.
There’s something powerful about these juxtapositions Fonseca talks about, and they’re present in every corner of the Fox Gallery.
Looking from the back of the exhibit, you can see David Siqueiro’s “Llamada al combate” — a small duco painting on a compressed board featuring a man with his torso exposed, ready for battle. Quickly turn your head, and you’ll find a female mannequin torso covered in Bible verses, Leon Ferrari’s “San Mateo 1.18.”
There’s also Carlos Cruz-Diez’s “Physicrome,” a piece made from chromatography on aluminium and plastic inserts, creating an embossed design that a 2D image can’t fully catch.
While the pieces exhibited — and the dialogues and contrasts between them — are compelling, it’s still an ambitious challenge to take on with only a 17-piece exhibit. We also noted that the show represents only five of the possible 33 countries (by one count) that could be included.
The Denver Art Museum faced an extra limitation — the exhibit is curated completely from the private collection of John and Sandy Fox.
You could say “A Century of Art in Latin America” is an introduction to the culture, history and art from the last century of the region through the lens of one private collection and through art from the last century
“If someone comes into the exhibit and learns something new, I’m satisfied,” Fonseca said.
It’s a tasteful appetizer into Latin American history and art. Just not the main dish.
“A Century of Art in Latin America” is now on view at the Denver Art Museum. The exhibition is included in the price of admission.
