Session Abstract

In this panel we hope to open a small, gendered window onto certain aspects of 20th century Mexican visual arts. Valeria Matos, will examine the representation of women by Julio Ruelas, renowned artist at the turn of the19th century, re-reading this figure to shed new light on the masculine imagination of women in fin de siglo Mexican art.

We also offer two of art’s ugly ducklings, photography and folk art, which are crucial within the artistic panorama of Mexico. Emma Cecilia García-Krinsky demonstrates the significant participation of women in photography throughout the 20th century, though they are still absent from the incipient history of this field. Finally, thinking of the arts as a continuum, without rupture between contemporary art and popular art, Eli Bartra will deal with the history of a specific example of feminine creativity through the polychromed clay figures from Izúcar de Matamoros, Puebla.

The principle proposition of this panel is to contribute to a gendered historical understanding of Mexican visual arts. At the same time, it attempts to seduce those interested in this vast field to take a dip in the waters of gender difference in the arts, which are still so hierarchical.

The commentator  is an art historian with a specialization in gender and representation in Mexican Visual arts.