We celebrate the Centenary of Mexican Muralism with a great exposition of José Clemente Orozco’s sketches, heritage of Museo Cabañas, which shall be valued as a whole for the first time over the last 40 years.
Apoderarse de todos los muros. Anteproyectps de José Clemente Orozco [Take possession of all walls. Preliminary drafts of José Clemente Orozco]
Rooms from 1 to 5 of South Circuit
July 2, 2022 to February 5, 2023
Opening conference: “José Clemente Orozco: nuevas interpretaciones” [José Clemente Orozco: new interpretations] By Dr. Sofía Anaya Wittman Wittman
The specialist Sofía Anaya (Full professor of the University of Guadalajara) will talk about the humanist feature of Orozco’s mural work, where philosophical, mythological and esoteric texts are converged which provide a new perspective of his muralist production, especially in Pomona College and in the major chapel’s dome of Museo Cabañas.
Saturday, July 2nd at 12:00 p.m.
South Baptistery
Museo Cabañas is the house of José Clemente Orozco and not only holds one of the most important mural complexes of the Mural Movement of the major chapel, but also the sketches and works heritage of this Jalisco’s artist. This is how we will celebrate the Centenary of Mexican Muralism, with a project which was developed after making a detailed review of Orozco’s heritage, in order to look back at the wide trajectory of one of the greatest muralism representatives. Since its opening in 1983, Museo Cabañas has had as one of its essential guidelines to preserve, exhibit and enrich the wide artistic legacy of José Clemente Orozco (1883-1949). It also holds a collection of works that consists of 340 pieces. From this whole, 221 works are murals previously analyzed. Their relevance, besides being historic and artistic, lies in being a reflection of creative processes that were part of the mural production of this creator. This set of sketches covers a chronological time period from 1922 to 1947, a period which incorporates works from his first murals until his last creative phase. This exposition will show as a whole these series of preliminary drafts which is how Orozco called them. Victor Palacios, Chief Curator of Museo Cabañas, points out that “these works address both compositional interests and anatomical or gestural studies. Sometimes they are related to his emerging works as a sharp political cartoonist”,
It starts with his 1922 sketches, the year in which he started painting murals at the Antiguo Colegio de San Ildefonso [Old College of San Ildefonso], then it was his time in the United States, Guadalajara and it finishes in 1948 with his murals at the Escuela Nacional de Maestros [National College of Teachers]. The goal is to bring the public closer to the artist’s studies by recognizing the influence Orozco had throughout the American continent.
More than having a chronological selection, the goal is to establish beautiful, technical and historical interactions that show the relevance of this heritage. Curatorship also tries to offer a general panorama of the context in which each mural was created, as well as showing the diversity of sizes, basis and techniques used by Orozco.
This project was benefited by the EFIARTES program and the contributing Jalisco’s company is TRACSA.
As part of this project two individual expositions of contemporary artists were presented as exhibitions linked to Orozco’s plastic language and his sketches: Florencia Guillén (Mexico City, 1977) and Elsa-Louise Manceux (Paris, 1985). “Both artists offer aesthetic approaches which are peculiar to their artistic practices, such approaches also are enriching, polemic and accurate in relation to the legacy of one of the most influential and recognized artists of Mexican’s modern art” stated the Curator. An Academic Program which will delve into Orozco’s works and a variety of mediation activities will also take place during the months when Apoderarse de todos los muros [Take possession of all walls] will be exhibited.
Academic Program of the exhibition
Apoderarse de todos los muros. Anteproyectos de José Clemente Orozco. [Take possession of all walls. Preliminary drafts of José Clemente Orozco.]
From July to November, 2022
Saturday, July 2, 2022
Opening conference
Dr. Sofía Anaya Wittman, “José Clemente Orozco: nuevas interpretaciones” [José Clemente Orozco: new interpretations.]
The specialist Sofía Anaya (Full professor of the Universidad de Guadalajara [University of Guadalajara]) will talk about the humanist feature of Orozco’s mural work, where philosophical, mythological and esoteric texts are converged which provide a new perspective of his muralist production, especially in Pomona College and in the major chapel’s dome of Museo Cabañas.
Thursday, September 22, 2022
Conversatorio
Discussion board
Dr. Dafne Cruz Porchini and Dr. Claudia Garay Molina
“Orozco, Guadalajara y Jiquilpan. Un enfoque crítico” [Orozco, Guadalajara and Jiquilpan. A critical approach.]
This discussion board Will Delve into the relationship Orozco had with Jiquilpan’s people, focusing especially on the mural commission at the Public Library Gabino Ortiz (1940) which is a benchmark of a potential relationship with Lázaro Cárdenas, as well as with the elites of Jalisco’s capital.
Thursday, October 13, 2022
Conversatorio
Discussion board
Dr. Sandra Zetina Ocaña and restorers of the Escuela de Conservación y Restauración de Occidente [The School of Conservation and Restoration of the West] (ECRO), “Análisis sobre la materialidad en la obra de José Clemente Orozco”, [An analysis about the material nature on José Clemente Orozco’s work.]
This roundtable will emphasize the main aspect of Orozco’s artistic work: the use of materials –such as pyroxylin and the fresco technique– and pigments both in his easel painting and his mural painting. Technical and material studies have become an important subject to give new interpretations about this artist.
Thursday, October 27, 2022
Discussion board
Dr. Daniel Garza Usabiaga and Master Carlos Palacios
“El expresionismo and miradas contemporáneas a la obra de José Clemente Orozco”, [Expressionism and contemporary glazes to Jose Clemente Orozco’s work.]
This curatorial discussion will emphasize Orozco’s work as a generational watershed which has motivated the creation of this work, especially in young creators of Jalisco.
Saturday, November 12, 2022
Closing conference
Dr. Renato González Mello, “José Clemente Orozco y la pintura de historia”, [José Clemente Orozco and a history painting.]
The responsible of this closing activity will be Renato González who is one the greatest specialists of Orozco’s work and muralism in general. His contributions have established innovative study paths in order to understand the subjects and content of this Jalisco’s artist throughout two decades.
Parallel mediation activities
From July 2, 2022 to February 23, 2023
Study group and a series of seminar-workshops
First event (face-to-face mode)
By Dr. Natalia de la Rosa
July 15th / Conference called “Pigmentocracia en el arte muralista”, [Pigmentocracy in mural art.]
July 16th / Seminary called “La reescritura de los muralismos (apropiación, reapropiación y desapropiación): Revisión crítica para un centenario vanguardista (1922-2022)”, [The rewriting of muralism (appropriation, reappropriation and expropriation): a critical review for an avant-garde centenary.]
Second event (face-to-face mode)
Dr. Jorge Hernández and Dr. Jarret Woods
August 20th and 27th / Seminary called “Análisis iconográfico y semiótico de la obra de arte. El muralismo mexicano como caso de estudio”, [An iconographic and semiotic analysis of artwork. Mexican muralism as a case study.]
Jorge Edgar has a PhD in philosophy from the Universidad de Guadalajara [University of Guadalajara.]
Dr. Jarret Woods is a semiologist and a historian. He has a PhD in Comparative Literature (Graduate in Arts from UNAM); History teacher (FFyL/UNAM) and Bachelor of Arts in social communication, specializing in intertextual semiotics (UAM-X).
Third evento (distance mode)
By Dr. Dina Comisarenco
July 28th Conference called “las muralistas”, [Muralists.]
September 24th / Seminary called “Género, arte y diversidad”, [Genre, art and diversity.]
By Dr. Dina Comisarenco
Dina Comisarenco has a PhD in Art History from the University of Rutgers, New Jersey, United States; Bachelor of Arts in Art History by the Universidad Nacional de Buenos Aires [National University of Buenos Aires], Argentina. She is a full professor at the Universidad Iberoamericana [Ibero-American University] and a publisher of Nierika. Art Studies Magazine. She specializes in Mexican Art and Design of the 20th century, and interconnections among genre, culture and society.
*Fotografía Leo Matiz. Cortesía Alejandra Matiz / Fundación Leo Matiz