The world is falling to pieces--and Weston
and Adams
are doing pictures of rocks.- Henri Cartier-Bresson
by Jerry A. Sierra / Vox Art Magazine, 1992
All art, from the crudest mass-media production
to the
most esoteric, has a political existence, or, more accurately,
an
ideological existence. It either challenges or supports. - Martha Rosler, 1979
"I like to focus on people's spirit, to show the best of where they come from, their lifestyle and their beauty," says photographer Laura Aguilar, "people are the most interesting artform."
In the tradition of the great Mexican muralists, these photographers get intensely involved with their work. Their images take the viewer right into the heart and soul of their subjects, not bothering to pull any punches.
Rather than indulge in the trivial pursuit of visual possibilities, they seek and capture the beauty and complexity of life, and their subjects' aspirations and disappointments, tragedies and triumphs.
These Latino imagemakers share the remote but powerful influence of recent trends from Latin America, where each day seems uncertain, different and unpredictable. As in most Third-World countries, art without political content tends to be perceived as elitist and irresponsible, an intolerable luxury.
Latino art circles no longer ask "Is it art, or is it photography?" Of course it's art! But it doesn't have to be void of social commentary, and it should not exclude that which society must learn to accept and overcome.
In the eyes of Latino culture, photographers and artists are accepted as heroes. They reflect society's true values, its challenges, its aspirations and its dreams.
At a time when many prefer a more static manipulated image, most Latino photographers remain loyal to Henri Cartier-Bresson's "decisive moment" esthetic. The term refers to the photographer's desire to "trap life, to preserve life in the act of living." Although some Latinos stray from this vision, many favor the inherent truth in documentary photography, rather than cleverly manipulating their imagery. "A documentary image can have great power and say a lot of things," says photographer Adam Avila, "It can educate and increase awareness. I prefer images that come directly from life."
Since the Los Angeles County Museum of Art's "Hispanic Art in the United States," two years ago, other exhibitions are spreading to leading galleries and museums. This recent exposure to Latino art, according to LA Times' Art Editor William Wilson, depicts "a vision of life lived closer to the bone than most middle-class people dare to contemplate." For a photographer nothing could be more challenging than to record the atrocities and inconsistencies of "life close to the bone."
Each photographer in this pictorial shares the hardships and rewards of a multi-cultural existence. They've learned to balance their Anglo and Latino sensibilities in a positive and productive manner.
Some argue that bi-culturalists inhabit a much larger world. Most of us are as comfortable with Carlos Fuentes or Jose Marti as with Tom Wolfe or Walt Whitman.
These photographers also share a passion for human faces. They deeply understand the realities faces often betray, so they present the face as an open door to someone's psyche. A map to their lives.
Articles by JAS Archive