20 Oct 2009

Vis-a-Vis: Miguel Ventura and Juan de Nieves at Americas Society

CANTOS CIVICOS

A Conversation between Miguel Ventura and Juan de Nieves

Vis-á-Vis series: Dialogues between Artists and Curators from the Western Hemisphere

Miguel Ventura, considered one of the most radical artists working in Mexico today, will discuss the critical context of his work with curator Juan de Nieves. Emphasis will be placed on his most recent project, Cantos Cívicos (2007-2008), which took place at the Contemporary Art Space, Castellón, Spain and the University Museum of Contemporary Art, part of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. This controversial project was part of a calculated action of the New Inter-territorial Language Committee (NILC), a fictional organization created with the purpose of systematically developing a new language.

Ventura's artistic practice is focused on the relationship between totalitarian political systems and their prevalence in today's neo-liberal policies. From this perspective, Ventura's work examines in depth how power relationships play upon notions of race, identity and difference.

Please visit our website to register for this event:
as-coa.org/cantoscivicos

All our programs are free of charge and open to the public.

More information regarding the project is available at:
cantoscivicos.blogspot.com/

This event is organized in collaboration with the Mexican Cultural Institute of New York.

 
**ON VIEW AT AMERICAS SOCIETY:

FERNELL FRANCO: Amarrados [Bound]

Guest curator: Maria Iovino

On view from September 17, 2009 through January 12, 2010
Gallery Hours: Wednesday-Saturday 12:00-6:00 pm
Free admission

Americas Society is proud to present the first U.S. solo museum exhibition of Colombian photographer Fernell Franco (1942 - 2006). The exhibition is guest curated by Maria Iovino and features seventeen large-scale black and white prints. The exhibition takes its title from the artist's series of the same name, featuring work developed between 1978 and 1994 in the streets and markets of Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. Depicting isolated, bound and wrapped structures, the photographs are exceptional in their use of tone, shadow, and composition. A self-taught practitioner who began his career as a photojournalist, Franco's work is now considered by leading critics to be among the most important in Latin American photography.