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Posts Tagged ‘MACO’

Dialog between cultures

Posted in Creativity, Culture, Exhibitions, People, Travel & Tourism, tagged Antonio Lazo Hernández, art exhibitions, Biliee, Cat's Cradle, Danza de la Pluma, danzantes, exhibits, Javier Lazo Gutiérrez, Juana Gutiérrez, La cuna del gato, MACO, Mexico, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca, museums, Oaxaca, Peter Liashkov, photos, plantón, Porfirio Gutiérrez Contreras, Teotitlán del Valle on January 11, 2019| 2 Comments »

On November 30, I went to the opening of the Bajo la bóveda azul cobalto/Under the Cobalt Blue Sky exhibition at the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca (MACO) — an innovative collaboration that paired thirteen visual artists from the USA and France with thirteen local artisan families. It was a fabulous and jam-packed event infused with the energy of conversation and creativity. Unfortunately, with so many people in attendance, seeing the art was challenging and I vowed to return.

Running into weaver Antonio Lazo Hernández, brother-in-law of Porfirio Gutiérrez Contreras, when I was in Teotitlán del Valle for the first day of the Virgen de Guadalupe festivities, gave me the nudge I needed to make time to actually see the show before leaving for my el norte trip. At the opening, I hadn’t even realized that Porfirio and his family (Antonio, Juana Gutiérrez Contreras, and Javier Lazo Gutiérrez) had been paired with Peter Liashkov to create a piece for the exhibition.

“The ability to leap freely about our imagery without any constraints” — Peter Liashkov

Their collaboration explored the story of the Danza de la Pluma — linking images of the Danza de la Pluma Promesa 2016-2018 danzantes to symbols used in the dance. They even incorporated the well-worn sandals of the dancers.

I couldn’t help thinking of the poem, Judge Softly, urging us all to,

Just walk a mile in his moccasins
Before you abuse, criticize and accuse.
If just for one hour, you could find a way
To see through his eyes, instead of your own muse.

“From the dialogue between our two cultures, we were able to make the references to diversification and syncretism visible, where there is always a cultural responsibility joined with a tragic story… something tragic for some and good for others… it produces new dialogues” — Porfirio Gutiérrez Contreras

Bajo la bóveda azul cobalto/Under the Cobalt Blue Sky runs through the end of February. There are twelve other amazing collaborations that demonstrate “what can happen when we accept our differences and our similarities; it is an example of coexistence under the same blanket of stars.” If you are in town, it is a show not to be missed.

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Week in Oaxaca – Day 5

Posted in Celebrations, Creativity, Culture, Libraries, Restaurants, Travel & Tourism, tagged Centro Fotográfico Manuel Álvarez Bravo, IAGO, Instituto de Artes Gráficas de Oaxaca, MACO, Mexico, mural, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Palacio de Gobierno, photographs, photography exhibitions, photos, Pitiona, pop-up restaurant, Waje, weddings, Week in Oaxaca on August 13, 2017| 4 Comments »

Our first stop on day five of B’s Week in Oaxaca was the Palacio de Gobierno to see the magnificent Mural of Oaxaca history. Ooops! I had forgotten that the Government Palace was now closed to the public. However, a polite appeal to see the mural, addressed to one of the guards by a couple of tourists (okay, one tourist and one resident), resulted in the guard receiving permission from a superior to let us in. We were instructed, mural only! We obeyed, walking only half-way up the grand staircase to take in the entire work of art. I love this mural by Arturo García Bustos and hope the palacio will again be opened to the public.

Once we had finished marveling at the Bustos history of Oaxaca, we walked up the Macedonio Alcalá to the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca (MACO) to check out the Espejos de Cal mural being painted in the courtyard by Jesús González. Engrossed in watching the mural unfold and fascinated in the technique explained by the artist’s Russian assistant, we never made it inside this treasure of a museum. Next time!

We strolled further up the Alcalá to the Instituto de Artes Gráficas de Oaxaca (IAGO), founded in 1988 by renown artist, philanthropist, and social activist, Francisco Toledo. First we wandered through the exhibition rooms and then into the impressive library. The 60,000+ books on art, architecture, design, photography, and much more is one of the most extensive arts-related collections in Latin America. A photography professor friend raved to me about finding a book at IAGO that he had been searching for and B (the architect) was ooh-ing and ahh-ing at titles he eyed — and pulled a few off the shelves to leaf through. IAGO also hosts lectures, conferences, musical performances, workshops, poetry readings, and film showings.

Needless to say, by the time we finally left, we were hungry. Lucky for us, the acclaimed restaurant Pitiona was only a block away. Born in Pinotepa Nacional, Oaxaca, Chef José Manuel Baños spent time in Spain under the tutelage of innovative chefs Feran Adrià and Juan Mari Arzak. However, as the name Pitiona (a native herb frequently used in Oaxacan cooking) suggests, the starting point for Baños is local ingredients. The simple elegance of the old colonial building and attention to detail in table settings, service, and especially food, made for a sublime interlude in the day’s activities.

We descended the stairs of Pitiona to the sound of music coming from the atrium of Templo de Santo Domingo de Guzmán. It was Saturday and that means wedding day at Santo Domingo – each featuring a band, folkloric dancers, marmotas (giant cloth balloons), bride and groom monos (giant puppets), a wedding procession down the Alcalá, and scores of tourists and locals stopping to watch — which we did, too!

Our final stop was at the photography museum Centro Fotográfico Manuel Álvarez Bravo, another brainchild of Francisco Toledo. The museum has over 18,000 photographs in its permanent collection, including by its namesake Manuel Álvarez Bravo, his first wife Lola Alvarez Bravo, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Tina Modotti, Guillermo Kahlo (yes, Frida Kahlo’s father), and Mary Ellen Mark. Works from the collection and by photographers from all over the world are exhibited in galleries surrounding a beautiful courtyard featuring a reflecting pool.

However, that wasn’t the end. After a siesta, we gathered with eight other diners for a Waje pop-up dinner. The June menu was an homage to mole and the setting was at the restaurant Mezquite Gastronomia Y Destilado where Waje chef, José Daniel Delgado is the new chef. As always, José Daniel and his Waje team provided a creative, delicious, and delightful evening. An added bonus was being seated across from Jason Cox, co-owner and mezcal steward of El Destilado — a restaurant I definitely need to try.

Only one day left in B’s Week in Oaxaca. Where to go? What to do? Stay tuned!

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Scenes from 2015

Posted in Animals, Casita Colibrí, Celebrations, Culture, Exhibitions, Flora, Travel & Tourism, tagged African Tulip trees, Casa Colonial, cattle, Cochineal, flowers, globos, hot air balloons, MACO, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Police riot shields, Primavera, San Juan Guelavia, San Mateo Macuilxóchitl, water lilies on January 1, 2016| 16 Comments »

Muchisimas gracias to all my wonderful blog readers — for reading, for commenting, for sharing, for the opportunity to meet some of you, and for inspiring me to continue. A look back at Oaxaca scenes that never made it into the blog…

January – Although spring was a couple of months away, the Primavera (Tabebuia chrysotricha) was already in bloom.

February – Cattle car on the carretera outside Tlacolula de Matamoros on Sunday market day.

March – A quiet morning on Monte Albán.

April – Decorating with agave flowers on Easter Sunday in Mitla.

May – Police temporarily remove and replace Sección 22 on the zócalo.

June – Though we arrived hours early for a festival in San Juan Guelavía, the sacred and profane were already present.

July – A favorite view from my terrace, the African tulip trees in full bloom.

August – At Casa Colonial the water lilies and hyacinths were stunning.

September – Cochineal (the “perfect red” dye) exhibition at Museo de Arte Contemporaneo de Oaxaca (MACO).

October – Returning from Teotitlán de Valle one morning, a globo was landing near San Mateo Macuilxochitl.

November – On the way to Mercado Hidalgo in Colonia Reforma to buy Thanksgiving groceries, Our Lady of the Wires (?).

December – Rooftop still life in El Centro.

A long, strange, and fascinating trip it continues to be. As another song says, Próspero año y felicidad!

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Art is the tree of life

Posted in Creativity, Culture, Exhibitions, Museums, Science & Nature, Travel & Tourism, tagged arts, Hecho en Oaxaca, MACO, Mexico, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca, Oaxaca, photographs, photos, street art, trees, urban art, William Blake quote on September 7, 2013| 4 Comments »

More from the Hecho en Oaxaca exhibit…

The courtyard at the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca (MACO)…

Art is the tree of life. — William Blake

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Waiting…

Posted in Creativity, Culture, Exhibitions, Museums, Music, Travel & Tourism, tagged arts, Hecho en Oaxaca, MACO, Mexico, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca, Oaxaca, photographs, photos, street art, urban art, Waiting On The World To Change lyrics on August 21, 2013| 2 Comments »

Another wall, courtesy of the Hecho en Oaxaca urban art project of the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca (MACO). It reminds me of the John Mayer song,

Waiting on the World To Change

Me and all my friends
We’re all misunderstood
They say we stand for nothing and
There’s no way we ever could

Now we see everything that’s going wrong
With the world and those who lead it
We just feel like we don’t have the means
To rise above and beat it

So we keep waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

It’s hard to beat the system
When we’re standing at a distance
So we keep waiting
Waiting on the world to change

Now if we had the power
To bring our neighbors home from war
They would have never missed a Christmas
No more ribbons on their door
And when you trust your television
What you get is what you got
Cause when they own the information, oh
They can bend it all they want

That’s why we’re waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

It’s not that we don’t care,
We just know that the fight ain’t fair
So we keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

And we’re still waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting waiting on the world to change
One day our generation
Is gonna rule the population
So we keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

~~~

But, then again, maybe he’s waiting to join the struggle to make the change…

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Out of the street, into the museum!

Posted in Buildings, Creativity, Culture, Exhibitions, Travel & Tourism, tagged art, Dr Lakra, exhibitions, Hecho en Oaxaca, MACO, Mexico, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca, Museum of Contemporary of Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Retna, Saner, street art, Swoon, urban art, wall art, Yescka on July 18, 2013| 4 Comments »

Oaxaca is alive with street art these days — even more than usual and that’s saying a lot! As part of their Hecho en Oaxaca (Made in Oaxaca) exhibition, the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca (Museum of Contemporary Art of Oaxaca) invited a dozen well-known and accomplished urban artists to transform the walls of the museum and the Historic District of the city.

A lifetime ago, prior to becoming a librarian, I was a registered nurse, first working in a hospital and then as a visiting nurse. The current MACO exhibit reminded me of one of the primary reasons why I much preferred the latter — it was the creativity needed in creating treatment plans to provide care in a patient’s often-times challenging home environment.

The imagination and inventiveness required to create art on crumbling walls with windows, doors, meters, and electrical boxes, never ceases to amaze me. As you can see below, even in MACO, that same vision is evident in the use of the museum’s many rooms and courtyards — including incorporating doorways, window sills, and colonial era frescos.

Yescka…