¡Murales Rebeldes!: L.A. Chicana/o Murals under Siege

About

The California Historical Society, in partnership with LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes, will present ¡Murales Rebeldes!: L.A. Chicana/o Murals under Siege, an exhibition exploring the way in which Chicana/o murals in the greater Los Angeles area have been contested, challenged, censored, and even destroyed. Murals became an essential form of artist response and public voice during the Chicano protests of the 1960s and 1970s. They were a means of expressing both pride and frustration at a time when other channels of communication were limited for the Mexican-American community. ¡Murales Rebeldes!: L.A. Chicana/o Murals under Siege is part of the Getty initiative Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA, a far-reaching and ambitious exploration of Latin American and Latino art in dialogue with Los Angeles. Through photography, sketches, related art works, and ephemera, ¡Murales Rebeldes!: L.A. Chicana/o Murals under Siege will tell the story of murals by Barbara Carrasco, Sergio O'Cadiz, Roberto Chavez, Willie Herron, and others from their genesis to their end. In this exhibition at LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes—in the historic heart of Los Angeles at El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historic Monument—CHS and LA Plaza will examine the iconography, content, and artistic strategies of key Los Angeles area Chicana/o murals that have made others uncomfortable to the point of provoking a contrary response, delving into the murals' complicated creation and subsequent disturbing history of censorship. About Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA Led by the Getty, Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA is the latest collaborative effort from arts institutions across southern California. This year's initiative will implicitly raise complex and provocative issues about present-day relations throughout the Americas and the rapidly changing social and cultural fabric of southern California. Through a series of thematically linked exhibitions, Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA will present a wide variety of important works of art, from modern and contemporary art to the ancient world and the pre-modern era. The exhibitions will range from monographic studies of individual artists to broad surveys that cut across numerous countries. The California Historical Society and LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes—a cultural center focused on the Mexican-American experience in Los Angeles and Southern California—are among 60 museums and cultural institutions taking part in this unprecedented collaboration of arts institutions in southern California focusing on the contributions of Latin American artists to the culture and history of the Southland. About LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes is the nation's premier center of Mexican American culture. Providing an experience unlike any other, LA Plaza's interactive exhibits and dynamic programs invite visitors of all backgrounds to explore as well as contribute to the ongoing story of Mexican Americans in Los Angeles and beyond. Located near the site where Los Angeles was founded in 1781, LA Plaza's 2.2-acre campus includes two historic and newly renovated buildings (the Vickrey-Brunswig Building and Plaza House) surrounded by 30,000 square feet of public garden. The California Historical Society is pleased to establish its southern California offices in this historic building.