Open Signal: Languages of Contemporary Art
In 1985, artist and cultural manager Leonel Estrada published Diccionario de Arte Actual (Dictionary of Contemporary Art), a glossary designed to introduce the public to the emerging artistic trends of the time. Open Signal: Languages of Contemporary Art offers a review of MAMM’s collection and documentary archive, through a selection of terms extracted from the dictionary. These concepts help contextualize the experimental practices developed in the region during the second half of the twentieth century. The dictionary was preceded by two earlier publications: the first, prepared by María Isabel Estrada in 1970, and the second, produced as a supplement to the newspaper El Mundo in 1981. Both circulated during the Medellín Art Biennials and served as an educational tool for the audience, broadening the interpretation and understanding of the languages, techniques, and artistic trends of the works presented at the biennials.
Curators: Ediciones Réplica: Arturo Salazar y José Ruiz
Artists: Adolfo Bernal, Álvaro Herazo, Ana Claudia Múnera, Antonio Caro, Armando Londoño, Armando Montoya, Beatriz González, Beatriz Jaramillo, Becky Mayer, Bernardo Salcedo, Bill Viola, Bridget Godfrey , Camilo Moreno, Carlos Echeverry, Carlos Gómez, Carlos Rojas, CAYC, Clemencia Lucena, Débora Arango, Diego Barbosa, Don Little, Edith Arbeláez, Eduardo Posada, Enrique Álvarez, Efraín Arrieta, Ethel Gilmour, Eugenio Dittborn, Félix Ángel, Fernell Franco, Gego, Germán Martínez, Gertjian, Bartelsman, Gloria Patricia Orrego, Gustavo Sorzano, Heidi Klein, Ida Esbra, Javier Betancourt, Javier Cruz, John Jairo Correa, Jonier Marín, Jorge Ortiz, José Alejandro Restrepo, Juan Camilo Uribe, Juan Carlos Restrepo, Juan Luis Mesa, Julián Posada, Julie Clucas, Liliana Porter, Lope Max Díaz, Lotty Rosenfeld, Luz Elena Castro, Margarita Paksa, Margarita Tamayo, María Teresa Cano, Mariano González, Mario Hernández, Mantilla, Marta Elena Vélez, Marta Minujín, Maryluz Álvarez, Mathias Goeritz, Michal Shabtay, Miguel Ángel Noya, Natalia Restrepo, Ofelia Rodríguez, Omaira Abadía, Óscar Monsalve, Otto Apuy, Patricia Bonilla, Raúl Marroquín, Ramiro Gómez, Rolando Peña, Rosa Navarro, Sergio Trujillo Dávila, Silvia Patiño, Tina Samper, Ulises Carrión
These experimental artistic practices found a space for convergence in the early 1980s through events promoted by MAMM, such as the Video Biennials (1986–1992), the Arturo and Rebecca Rabinovich Salons (1981–2003), and the First Latin American Colloquium on Non-Object Art and Urban Art (1981). The archive of these events encompasses a variety of documents, including correspondence, artist portfolios, sketches, protocols, and records of works that were accepted or rejected for exhibition. This exhibition offers a review of pieces that traverse the notions of document, work, and record, drawing on the reinterpretation of documentary archives, publications, press, installation essays, and textual experiments.
The exhibition is divided into four sections, each named after a rebellious exhibition project developed in Colombia during the 1980s. [1] From Page to Space: This section includes works that explore the relationship between two-dimensional and three dimensional space. It encompasses projects that straddle the nexus between the image as a document and the image as a creative process. Some works explore the limits of photography as a visual art medium. [2] Plural Attitudes: This section presents non-objectual projects and practices linked to political, conceptual, and experimental processes. It brings together artists who use the body explicitly or implicitly in ephemeral actions. Many of these works were participatory in nature, challenging the conventional boundaries between the artist and the audience. [3] Paper and Pencil: This section examines the evolution of mail art in the country through exhibitions and publishing projects connected to regional artist networks. [4] Audiovisual 1: This section brings together projects in magnetic media or their translations into graphic format, expanding the notions of video as a medium for visual and sound experimentation.
Open Signal: Languages of Contemporary Art showcases the educational essence of Leonel Estrada’s 1985 project and invites the audience to contribute suggestions for redefining the museum experience. Which artwork would you choose to illustrate the concept of automatism included in the dictionary?
Institutional Partnership
Support provided by
