Bencomo 1

Estephanie Bencomo.
CCS450.

Prof. Solamani.
December 1st, 2020.

Border art and its relationships with other art practices.

The Tijuana-San Diego border region has followed a cultural process guided by migration,

the delimitation of spaces by the border, urbanization, industrialization, and the consolidation of

border culture.​ La Frontera​ is the space that limits, signifies, and identifies the culture of the

region. The concept of ​La Frontera​, in the border area, contains a large number of connotations

from a cultural and historical scope. The border has the connotation of being the limit between

one culture and another, between this one and the other side; it is the separation of two cultural

spaces divided by a line, which separates the whole. The northern border of Mexico also evokes

proximity to the United States, "la tierra de las oportunidades"; which attracts millions of

immigrants to the region in search of better opportunities and living conditions. The

Mexican-American border, as a geographical space, has also been identified with the desert, an

obstacle for the millions of Mexicans and Latin Americans who intend to cross the border.

Poisonous animals, extreme heat, cold nights, violence by the United States military groups, the

border patrol, among others, are the imminent dangers of border crossing.

Since the 1980s, in the Tijuana-San Diego border region, there has been a visual artistic

production whose main theme is the border. It is the first period of formation of artistic

collectives in search of a local identification of the border region, through the interpretation and

representation of daily life and local culture generated in that geographic space. Most of the

artworks made in the eighties are recognized as border art and focus on the theme of the border,
 Bencomo 2

migration issues, and the political dynamics between the United States and Mexico that affected

the border area. At this time, artists who began to organize themselves into independent

collectives began the conformation of the artistic community that currently exists in the region.

They thought of the border issue as something that meant the culture of the region and allowed to

explain the dynamics of migration, social conformation, and political and economic structures

that only developed in the region border. The historical and experiential experience of the border

population led to the reformulation of border concepts in the 1980s; some were expressed

through the art of the time. The artistic production served to express the conflict in national and

cultural identities, as well as economic and social problems from the region. In this context,

Chicano art arises, considered at this time, as the art of the border. Chicano artists were able to

configure in the 1980s a proposal on identity conflicts in regions prone to migration and the new

cultural configuration in border areas. In this decade, one of the most important groups for

Border and Chicano Visual Art production was created, El Taller de Arte Fronterizo / Border Art

Workshop (TAF/ BAW), founded in 1983 by a group of artists, activists, and cultural promoters

from the Tijuana-San Diego region. Their main objective was to build a space for dialogue to

understand and reflect from art, the socio-historical condition of the border between Mexico and

the United States. Many of the artists who were part of the workshop understood the border as a

space of resistance, a central place for the production of counter-hegemonic dissertations found

in words, in the way of life, and in everyday experience. Their activist work has to do with an

interest in generating a discussion about the meaning of the border for the people in the region, in

the nation, and in the world. Furthermore, since the border between Mexico and the United

States is very important, in terms of exchange, they propose a discussion not only local but about

the generality of what the borders are. The TAF /BAW projects were very important for the
 Bencomo 3

artistic development of the region, since in these, from the historical and social experience, a

discussion that to this day has not been abandoned and continues to generate local art in the

region.

In 1988, Richard Lou installed an open door on the border. The​ Border Door​, the name of

this artwork, was located near the Tijuana airport, in a space where the mesh, used at the time,

had been damaged. A metal door was set within a wooden frame. This was open to the United

States and had 134 keys stuck on the Mexican side. Lou declared that the play was a worthy

invitation to all migrants seeking a life in the United States. Border Door was removed by the

border patrol, fortifying the Mexican-US border later on. (Carroll, pg. 11). In a more visually and

theatrical performance, artist Guillermo Gómez-Peña has created numerous characters, who are a

reflection of the Mexican-American culture and the border. In one of his performances,

Gómez-Peña represented the “Border Brujo”, a border shaman. “The Border Brujo” speaks

several languages, switching between English, Spanish and Spanglish. Some words are also

pronounced in German and French, in addition to imitating Nahuatl. It is enriched by the typical

vocabulary of the border, accents and intonations, whose sources are ​la jerga​ of the pachucos,

the political discourse and anchormen. During the performance, Gómez-Peña stands behind a

domestic altar. It contains objects from Mexican and American cultures, of popular and religious

origin; The ​altar​ refers to the aesthetics of Chicano Rasquachismo. This consists of the mixture

of different materials and Mexican and American codes. In this way, the altar represents the

dynamic atmosphere of daily life in the neighborhood. The eclecticism of the altar is to mirror

the clothing of the artist. His wardrobe consists of a pachuco-style hat, numerous pins and

(probably) the most striking accessory, a necklace of plastic bananas. The necklace of bananas is

a clear allusion to the derogatory nickname that many Latin American states receive as
 Bencomo 4

“republicas bananeras”, or to the American propaganda that applies stereotypical images to the

sale of imported Latin American fruits. Gomez-Peña's artistic performances may be influenced

by “el teatro de carpa”, extremely popular cultural and artistic stage performances in Mexico in

the early 20th century. As explained in Versenyi’s book ​Not The Other Avant-Garde,​ “teatros de

carpa”were groups of performers who toured from town to town, they used to have a close

interaction with the audience; an informal atmosphere, full of satirical and political material.

Gomez Peña's performances can also be described as such because, by watching videos of his

character ​Border Brujo​, the performances contain the same elements as "Teatro de Carpa".

Muralism was likewise a prominent influence; Chicanos had a strong influence from the

Mexican muralists, it is an example and a model that was replicated in the 60s especially with

their movement. Beginning after the Mexican Revolution, the muralism movement was used for

political activism, as well to reflect the Mexican society (and the fight for change) in an artistic

and cultural way. (Versenyi, 147). Notable figures of this movement were artists such as Diego

Rivera, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and José Clemente Orozco; whose murals upholstered important

buildings in the country. Muralism arrived in the United States; this time the Chicano community

used the same aspects and style of the mentioned artists to protest and portray their history and

culture during their movement in the 60s and 70s. Unlike Mexican muralists, Chicano artists

used any type of paint and tools, and created their art on whatever wall was available. In the

early 60s, an art group called ASCO was formed; Just as TAF / BAW focused especially on

border art, ASCO focused primarily on Chicano art. In Chon Noriega's ​Your Art Disgusts Me:

Early Disgust 1971-75​, many artistic works that the collective made are shown; most were

involved in street performances, one example was ​The Walking Mural​.​ ​This performance

consisted of three artists dressing up as a Christmas tree and ​La Virgen de Guadalupe,
 Bencomo 5

representing the union of two cultures, a theme that is prominent in border art; Christmas and the

day of “La Virgen” are two holidays celebrated in December. Years later, TAF / BAW made a

performance with similar aspects and symbols to ​The Walking Mural​. In 1986, twelve artists

reunited, dressed up with colorful costumes to transmit a message at Border Field Park/Las

Playas. The performance was called ​The End of the Line​. Six actors positioned on the Mexican

side, personifying typical characters of the Mexican society such as the taxi driver, the

housekeeper, the easy, the homeboy, the cactus and the indigeneous; While in the other side of

the fence, 6 American artists personified characters from the Anglo-American society, like the

surfer, the punk rocker, the marine, the border patrol agent and the bishop. (Carroll, pg. 14).

There’s again a representation of two societies, two cultures connected in an art performance, but

still, a fence is dividing them. Each character had a mirror reflecting themselves, which it could

represent sticking to their side of the border and being aware of who they are and where they

came from, and also to be aware of their stereotype; Mirrors can also symbolize individualism,

an issue that is seen in the American society. Mirrors got broken later on, breaking their

reflection and stereotype. They can be seen by others; the twelve characters now can reunite

freely at the table located at the very end of the fence. The dining scene can be compared to

ASCO’s ​First Supper (After a Major Riot)​ (Carroll, pg. 14). Like​ La Virgen de Guadalupe​ and

he Christmas tree walked side by side in ​The Walking Mural,​ the dining scene in ​The End of the

Line ​reinforces the unity of two societies and two cultures regardless of a fence.

Many factors in the Tijuana-San Diego border region have allowed the development of an

important cultural and artistic movement in Mexico and the United States from the 1980s until

now, whose visual expression raises new ways of understanding border concepts. , migration,

identity, consumer culture, and globalization. Tijuana is a city that has developed alongside the
 Bencomo 6

cultural processes of Mexico. With a relatively recent history, some social groups such as the

artistic community have sought an identification and significance with the geographical and

social space in which they live. The artistic community of Tijuana that has developed since the

eighties, has found through art, a space for discussion and significance of its culture. It is

important to highlight the use and social function of art in Tijuana as a cultural phenomenon that

allows us to know how the community perceives, constructs, and interprets the experiential

experience and the culture that surrounds them. Since the eighties, this community has managed

to maintain a discussion centered on the border and the social processes that develop around; this

discussion has opened up new visual interpretations of the culture. Currently, art in Tijuana is

important because it helps the discussion of social, economic, and political issues, and makes the

social and local problems, and the conflict of borders that they experience characteristic of the

region; on the other hand, art in Tijuana rethinks its history and its own myth. It was possible to

understand different themes that are approached in the art of Tijuana and that are discussed from

different points of view in the performances and visual works.

 Bencomo 7

Cited Works.

Border Arts Workshop/Taller de Arte Fronterizo. “End of the Line Workshop.” Calisphere, UC

Santa Barbara, Library, Department of Special Research Collections,

calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/hb5v19p2h0/.

Carroll, Amy Sara. ​REMEX: toward an Art History of the NAFTA Era.​ University of Texas

Press, 2018.

Noriega, Chon A. “'Your Art Disgusts Me': Early Asco, 1971—75.” ​Afterall: A Journal of Art,

Context and Enquiry​, vol. 19, 2008, pp. 109–121., doi:10.1086/aft.19.20711719.

Versényi, Adam. “Made in Mexico: The Theatrical Avant-Garde and the Formation of a Nation.”

Not the Other Avant-Garde: The Transnational Foundations of Avant-Garde

Performance,

edited by James M. Harding and John Rouse, University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor,

2006, pp. 145–167. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/10.3998/mpub.166699.10. Accessed 6

Oct. 2020.

Vir. “Border Brujo 1989.” ​Vimeo,​ 14 Nov. 2018, vimeo.com/28241295.

Bencomo 8