Border Cantos: Sight & Sound Explorations from the Mexican-American Border opens Feb. 18 at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville. The free exhibit, a unique collaboration between American photographer Richard Misrach and Mexican American sculptor/composer Guillermo Galindo, uses the power of art to explore the complex issues surrounding the United States-Mexico border.
Misrach, who has photographed the border since 2004, documents landscapes and objects, including items left behind by migrants. His large-scale photographs, along with grids of smaller photos, highlight issues surrounding migration and its effect on regions and people.
Responding to these photographs, Galindo fashioned sound-generating sculptures from items Misrach collected along the border, such as water bottles, Border Patrol “drag tires,” spent shotgun shells, ladders, and sections of the border wall itself. The sounds they produce give voices to people through the personal belongings they have left behind.
The exhibit is on view through April 24. Presented in English and Spanish, Border Cantos offers perspective on the challenges of migration, inviting people to bridge boundaries. Admission to Crystal Bridges and Border Cantos is free.
“We’re artists; we’re not politicians. We want to give people the experience of the border, and to get acquainted with the immigrants’ journey. To make it palpable. To make it human.” — Guillermo Galindo, referring to himself and Richard Misrach.
The exhibition, Border Cantos, was born of a chance encounter at an event in San Francisco in 2011 when Misrach attended a performance by Galindo featuring his original compositions played on instruments he constructed of objects found at the US-Mexico border. By the next year, the two artists started to develop their work in tandem. Misrach began thinking of his photographs as having a musical quality to them and Galindo’s compositions materialized into images, each interpreting a landscape laden with remnants of individual’s journeys.
“While the topic of the US-Mexico border is challenging and even divisive at times, Misrach and Galindo seek to bridge divides instead of creating barriers. The artwork in the exhibition creates a space for visitors to develop a deeper understanding of the complicated issues surrounding the border,” said Ali Demorotski, exhibition curator at Crystal Bridges.
As part of Border Cantos, Crystal Bridges created an advisory committee with local Hispanic/Latino community leaders to receive feedback and guidance on the exhibition, programs, and interpretive elements in order to be more culturally inclusive. The museum has partnered with groups and individuals to provide supplemental programs and expand the conversation into schools, churches, libraries, and other community-based organizations. Members of the museum’s exhibition team have also been facilitating speaker’s bureau events around the community. These presentations provide an overview of the exhibition, offer insights, and spark conversations about the complex topics in Border Cantos. For more information, visit here.
“Border Cantos helps us engage a broad audience by offering programs outside the walls of the museum and a completely bilingual exhibition with the addition of Spanish-language materials and tours,” said Bigelow.
In addition to the works of art in the gallery, Border Cantos provides resources and programs to deepen understanding of the exhibition and subject matter:
To learn more about Border Cantos, visit the Crystal Bridges website. For news updates, follow Crystal Bridges on the Blog, Facebook or Twitter #CBBorderCantos.
New Crystal Bridges exhibit explores Mexican-American border
Border Cantos is a timely, new and free exhibit now on view at Crystal Bridges.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement