Starting Feb. 15 Vanderbilt professors will offer informed perspective on the acclaimed exhibition Mexico and Modern Printmaking: A Revolution in the Graphic Arts, 1920-1950, at the Frist Center for the Visual Arts.
Diego Rivera, Jose Clemente Orozco and David Alfaro Siqueiros are among those featured in Mexico and Modern Printmaking, which examines the political and artistic contributions made by Mexican and foreign-born printmakers living in Mexico during the Mexican Revolution. Visitors can see 125 prints and posters by 50 artists in the exhibition, which runs through April 15.
The following “Off the Wall” lectures are co-sponsored by Vanderbilt‘s Center for Latin American and Iberian Studies:
- Feb. 15 at 6:30 p.m. Edward Wright-Rios, assistant professor of history, will address “Making Art and Revolution: The Prints, Politics and History in Mexico‘s Taller de Gráfica Popular, 1937-1960.” Wright-Rios will discuss the remarkable story and artistic production of the world‘s most enduring graphic arts cooperative in historical and political context.
- March 8 at 6:30 p.m. Professor of Art History Leonard Folgarait will discuss “Giving Context to Modern Mexican Art and Printmaking.” He will analyze the style of key images from the exhibit to show how choices are made by an artist. For example, how does composition and color help to emphasize the overall meaning of an image?
- April 12 at 6:30 p.m. Gary Gossen, Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Anthropology and Latin American Studies, State University of New York at Albany, will address “The Heroic Theme in Multi-Ethnic Societies: What We Can Learn from Mexican Art.” He will talk about how the great generation of Mexican nationalist artists whose work is included in the exhibit expresses a theme from which the United States can learn as it becomes increasingly diverse.
The center will provide translators and translation equipment for all lectures, which are free and open to the public, to accommodate Spanish-speaking members of the audience. In addition, Wright-Rios will lead a professional development workshop for K-12 teachers.
The center‘s support for the exhibit is made possible through its National Resource Center funding from the U.S. Department of Education. Edward F. Fischer, director of the Center for Latin American and Iberian Studies and associate professor of anthropology, said that the partnership marks an exciting new vehicle for the center to forge connections with the community. “As a National Resource Center, we are charged with increasing public knowledge and awareness of Latin America,” he said. “We are adept at doing this is the classroom and more traditional academic settings. With this new partnership, we are able to take advantage of the Frist‘s considerable expertise and reach out to a new constituency to share Vanderbilt‘s world-class expertise in Latin American studies.”
The center‘s collaboration with the Frist is part of a continuing partnership between Vanderbilt and the nonprofit art exhibition center. More information is available at www.fristcenter.org.
Media contact: Ann Marie Deer Owens, 615-322-NEWS
annmarie.owens@vanderbilt.edu