Art in the Streets of Oaxaca

 Location: Oaxaca, Mexico    Date: July 13, 201

 “I am going to keep intact the memory of this instant because everything that exists right now will never be the same”

                                    

Location: Oaxaca, Mexico       Date: July 13, 2014 

“No, I was not cured yet; love is a disease, the only natural thing is hatred.”

Location: Oaxaca, Mexico    Date: July 21, 2014

Drawing of a kid letting birds fly, which symbolizes freedom.

                                 

Location: Oaxaca, Mexico      Date: July 21, 2014 

A street decoration with a mixture of Pre-Columbian art and Modern art.

                             

Location: Oaxaca, Mexico     Date: July 21, 2014 

Drawing of a child. Next to it, there is a quote, which is kind of hard to see, about death and how we take life for granted.

Location: Oaxaca, Mexico      Date: July 30, 2014 

“Imagine the universe dreaming in space, caressing the infinite. Swinging in a comet. A star will be beside the moon giving a precious astral love.”

Location: Oaxaca, Mexico     Date: July 30, 2014

 A rose, which is surrounded by pyramids and buildings.

Location: Oaxaca, Mexico    Date: July 30, 2014

 Drawing of a girl standing in a swing with the face of the death.

Location: Oaxaca, Mexico    Date: July 31, 2014 

 Graffiti of two names, “Mindi” and “Papok.”

 Location: Oaxaca, Mexico       Date: August 3, 2014 

Street mural with the drawing of two men pulling an indigenous god while other two men try to grab it.

Location: Oaxaca, Mexico    Date: August 4, 2014 

Graffiti with the drawing of a man  “doing” a graffiti.

Location: Oaxaca, Mexico     Date: August 4, 2014 

Drawing of a kid with multiple traditional Mexican toys around him.

Art in the Streets of Oaxaca

          Located in the Southern part of Mexico with a population of 3,506, 821, Oaxaca is not only the fifth largest state in Mexico, but it is also one of the most traditional and cultural states. The name Oaxaca comes from the Náhuatl word Hauxyacac, which, according to the Encyclopedia of Mexican States, in Spanish translates to “En la Cima de el Árbol Guaje” (English translation – On the Top of the Guaje Tree.) Oaxaca was officially founded in 1824, since then it has been of great importance for Mexico’s diversity counting with a variety of indigenous groups. As for today, Oaxaca, has officially sixteen indigenous groups; the majority being the Zapotec followed by the Mixtec. Of course, each of these indigenous groups has conserved their own traditions, customs, and dialects throughout time. This state also counts with some of the most amazing and beautiful archaeological sites in Mexico known as Monte Albán and Mitla. These sites do not only give Oaxaca a sense of heritage and culture, but the also help with the tourism in the state, which is now the main economic resource. However, Oaxaca, does not only count with these archaeological sites as attractions, there are many more such as the cuisine, the architecture, the diversity, and the one that caught my attention the most while is Oaxaca the art in its streets and the meaning behind it.

            During my stay in Oaxaca, there were a lot of things that impressed me about this culture. Such as its unique cuisine (i.e. mole, Oaxaca cheese, chapulines, etc.); the Spaniard influence in the architecture (i.e. buildings, houses, churches, etc.) and its unique bright colors; and also, how important is the catholic religion for this society. However, what impressed me the most was the urban art or street art that decorated the streets of Oaxaca. Since the first time I saw this kind of art, I wanted to know more; why people do it? What is its meaning? And, how does it relate to the history of Oaxaca and its cultural heritage? Throughout this blog along with the photographic ethnography, I will not only be able to answer this question to myself, but also to the people that have the opportunity to read this.

            In order to be able to talk about the modern and urban art in Oaxaca it is necessary to first understand the historical framework of art since the Pre-Columbian times. It is also important to discuss how each indigenous group has influenced the young generation that now lives in a more industrialize and liberal society than the one that their ancestors lived in. According to the website “Historia del arte Mexicano” (English translation – History of the Mexican Art), the indigenous groups of the Pre-Columbian era used art in many ways. One of these ways was to used it as some kind of expression; in Monte Alban, as explained in the website “Historia del arte Mexicano,” the indigenous used to decorate the walls of the pyramids with a type of drawing that they called “los danzantes,” which they used to express their views on “monsters, dwarves, ill people, dead people, hunchbacks, etc.” They also worked on grey pottery, which they decorated with unique messages or images of the gods that they used to worship, which later they used as offerings to the temples and tombs to honor the priests and leaders of their group.

After the Pre-Columbian era, according to the Spaniard web magazine “The Cult,” the Spaniards came to America and after finding such an amazing new world their only goal was to colonized it. With them, they brought Catholicism, which influenced in many ways the society that the indigenous groups were used to. One of these influences was the architecture, there were more churches, buildings, houses, etc. with the European style that the Spaniards brought in. They also mixed the European art with the indigenous one, using as decorations some of the indigenous reliefs in the facades of the new buildings and churches with the goal of combining their own culture with the indigenous culture. At the same time, the native people started to paint with a mix of their ancestral religion and the Catholic religion; regardless the fact that the catholic church did not support this the natives kept doing painting in where they expressed themselves sometimes unconsciously with paints in where God, death, pagan gods and the virgin Mary were together.

After the independence of Mexico from Spain, most of the population had a nationalistic spirit and that was reflected in the small amount of paintings that existed during this time; however, in Oaxaca, art during this period was inexistent, meaning that there were not people that dedicated their time to make new paintings, instead all of that Oaxaca possessed, like many other parts in Mexico, had that Spaniard influence. More specifically, they had great architecture and beautiful paintings that told the story of the evolution of Oaxaca until the time before the independence. This situation changed when a contemporary artist called Rufíno Tamayo brought something fresh and different to the artistic field of Mexico. By making what others were not doing during that time - remembering the pre-Columbian era in his painting, but representing the modern era as well. He did so through cubist and linear techniques, his paintings were really revolutionary because they were characterized with drawings that reflected indigenous people fighting, just walking, or just protesting due to the racism that they went through in the old times. Rufíno Tamayo put the name of Oaxaca in the artistic map and showed that there are talented artists with big potential. Nowadays walking around the streets of Oaxaca one is able to notice the artistic talent that many people have. Every corner of this city is decorated with meaningful and beautiful art that many people considered not to be a form of urban art, but instead a form of vandalism.

            There is not denying that this entire historical frame of cultures and traditions makes Oaxaca one of the most touristic cities in Mexico. All of its art museums, as well as its architecture both Pre-Columbian and Colonial make the stay in Oaxaca even more pleasant. Besides those attractions, there is what many called “Urban Art” - a type of art that can be appreciated by simply walking around the city, which, does not only adorn the city, but it also gives the city a sense of having a magical environment. This type of art has grown significantly since Pre-Columbian times, which is why there is a lot of influence of previous times in such a modern art. For example, in many of these drawings one is able to see how there is a combination of divine entities such as Jesus and the Virgin Mary, with different kinds of monsters and also with drawings that represent death; this type of paintings is very common around the streets of Oaxaca, proving that the indigenous traditions are still present in the modern world and that they will still be present for many years more. Another example of the “Urban Art” in Oaxaca is the murals that are dedicated to people who have died or disappeared. Mural paintings were also a part of the Pre-Columbian art, like it was explained in previous paragraphs, the indigenous people used to decorate the pyramids with monsters and/or death people, of course, to them, this might had a different meaning, but the fact that this is now happening in the streets of Oaxaca lets us know that people are still being influenced by this. In Oaxaca there is also a kind of “Urban Art” called “Revolutionary Urban Art,” which is a type of art that mainly criticizes politics, religion, and everyone that goes against the basic principles of the city. This type of art has had such a huge impact in the artistic world of Mexico that this “Revolutionary Urban Art” has become the main kind of painting for many artists around Mexico. According to an article called “Saner Inicia Circuito de Arte Urbano en Oaxaca” (English translation – “Saner Initiates a Circuit of Urban Art in Oaxaca”), one of the most well known artists of this kind of art is called Saner, a regular guy from Mexico City that became famous when he painted a mural called, “The People are to Serve the Government,” since then this mural has been replicated and exhibited in many places around the would such as New York, California, and in art festival around Europe. The “Urban Art” has yet a lot to give to the streets of Oaxaca; everyday is a new beginning for a new artist who starts by writing on the walls quotes about love, reflections, or just putting his name in an artistic way which little by little learns how to do this kind of art in a more complex and beautiful way. Artists that dedicate their time to do this kind of art learn how to leave their thoughts and feelings in a painting in where they mix their traditions with the modern society, which creates an art that helps distinguish this beautiful city among the other thousands of cities that exist in Mexico.

Bibliography

Aguilar Orihuela, Alonso. “Saner Inicia Circuito de Arte Urbano en Oaxaca.” El Jolgorio Cultural. n.d. Web. 13 Aug. 2014. < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0go2nfVXFgA >.

“Arte Pre-Hispánico en Oaxaca.” Historia del Arte Mexicano. n.p. n.d. Web. 12 Aug. 2014. < https://sites.google.com/site/historiadelartemexicano/home/arte-prehispanico-en-oaxaca >.

“Oaxaca.” Nationsencyclopedia. Advameg, 2007. Web. 11 Aug. 2014. < http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/mexico/Michoac-n-Zacatecas/Oaxaca.html >.

“Oaxaca.” History. A&E Networks, n.d. Web. 11 Aug. 2014. < http://www.history.com/topics/mexico/oaxaca >.

RTamayo: Oficina de Derechos de Autor Rufino Tamayo. Rufinotamayo. n.d. Web. 13 Aug. 2014 < http://www.rufinotamayo.org.mx/site/derechos >.

Saner. “The People are to Serve the Government.” BlogSpot. BlogSpot, 19 Jul. 2012. Web. 13 Aug. 2014. < http://www.saner-dsr.blogspot.mx/2012/07/the-people-are-to-serve-government.html >.

Urrero, Guzmán. “The Cult.” The Cult Web mag. , 09 Jan. 2009. Web. 12 Aug. 2014. < http://www.thecult.es/Arte/aruitectura-colonial-de-oaxaca.html >.

By: Linda Plata