Through art how can we apropiate it?
Arte Abierto presented Come in, come in, it's Arte Abierto, at Colonia Atlampa from February 5 to 8, a meeting between 4 artists who propose interventions in public space that trigger coexistence and exchange between passers-by and artists, and who demonstrate that art is not only looked at, but that it is inhabited and shared.
With these 4 pieces, Arte Abierto joins Mexico City's 2026 Art Week and takes to the streets, in partnership with the Cuauhtémoc Mayor's Office, to create spaces for artistic experimentation in an open, inclusive, dynamic and stimulating way.
Eder Castillo Presented the GuggenSITO, a portable and floating museum, similar to games for children that parodies the great museums of modern art. GuggenSito is a canvas and space for experimentation, which seeks to generate a collective artistic experience through action on it.
Gustavo Abascal will do an intervention in the planters of space, exploring overexposed images, where passers-by can rest and have a meeting space.
Astrro (Astrid Silva) will generate an intervention about a disused cabin, where she will recover the aesthetics of the typical signs of Mexico City, with popular phrases about exchange, sale and everyday life.
Illegal Art presented Suggestion Box, an invitation to the public to write and deposit ideas or thoughts in a box, collecting anonymous suggestions and sharing them as a collective reflection of the community.
In addition, and as part of this initiative, a talk entitled Outside the White Cube: Stories of Public Art will be held on February 5 at 5PM, with reflections on public space, urban and popular art, in which artists Eder Castillo, Gustavo Abascal and Astrro will participate, moderated by public art specialist Ana Lizeth Mata.
Visual and plastic artist focused on representing the popular culture of Mexico City. Through painting and alternative media, she captures the everyday identity and spirit of its streets. Her work seeks to unite urban scenarios with sociopolitical issues, addressing the injustice and socioeconomic violence affecting Mexican society.
Astrro's work abstracts elements from everyday life to make visible the hidden problems of neighborhoods in the capital, creating an art that not only documents urban reality, but also invites us to reflect on the social challenges faced by the community.
Artistavisual especializado en diferentes técnicas, tales como gráfica, dibujo, pinturamural en formatos que varían sus dimensiones. Este oscilar entre tamaños y formasse han convertido en un tema de trabajo.
La búsqueda demateriales (tema) tales como el capital humano y otros que juegan con la descomposiciónde lo transitorio y lo oculto. El realismo social y el ensayo de éste como referenciacontinua. Trabaja en diferentes series de pintura explorando la imagen sobreexpuesta,y el uso negativo del espacio. La materia especulativa, el fenómeno social y lastragedias psíquicas que coexisten en el cotidiano son los puntos de partida de suobra.
Self-taught visual artist and curator focused on sociocultural research and art in public space, at the intersection of architecture, visual arts and anthropology. His projects aim at an interaction between non-traditional audiences and art. In parallel, he has developed professionally in the field of curatorship, teaching and cultural management. He has been a member of the National System of Art Creators of FONCA since 2020 in the discipline of alternative media. He has participated in multiple residency programs such as Tabacalera Estancias for Ibero-American Curators - Ministry of Culture of Spain (ES), Artery Foundation - Gilberto Alzate Avenaño Foundation (CO), YAXS Foundation (GT) and Casa Vecina Foundation of the Historical Center (MX); Beneficiary of the PAC/COVID-19 Support Fund (2020), FONCA-CONACYT International Artistic Residency Program (2012- 2013), FONCA Special Support Program (2010), Program to Support Production and Research in Art and Media Center Multimedia-CNA (2006) and National System of Art Creators FONCA (2020-2023). His work has been shown in Spain, Switzerland, Sweden, Italy, Slovenia, Poland, Indonesia, Japan, Egypt, South Africa, the United States, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Puerto Rico, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador, Mexico, and other countries.
Instagram: @edercastilloj
The Illegal Art collective was founded in 2001 by artists Otis Kriegel and Michael McDevitt in New York. Its goal is to create participatory public art to inspire self-reflection, thinking and human connection. Each piece is presented or distributed in a way that encourages participation and is simple. His projects have been installed in the United States and South America, Europe and the Middle East.
The results of their project, Suggestion Box, were published by Chronicle Books (Suggestion, August 2005). Suggestion Box has also traveled to three continents, activated by individuals and groups from their local communities, collecting suggestions from tens of thousands of people, in numerous languages.
Illegal Art's work has appeared in media outlets such as National Public Radio, WNYC Radio, American Public Radio, The New York Times, New York Magazine, The Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, Entertainment Weekly, Flavorpill, The Public Art Review, Dwell Magazine, International Herald Tribune, Ad Age, The Guardian and the New York Times.
They were the first artists in residence at the 2013 SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas and have been awarded residencies at Vermont Studio Center, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Webb School of Knoxville and others.
Co-founder Otis Kriegel talks about the work of Illegal Art at TEDx Manhattan Beach in October 2018. Illegal Art also collaborates with other groups and institutions such as the architectural collective 1319, based in Buenos Aires, Argentina and the Museum of Urban Art in Rome.
His work has been published in numerous catalogs in the United States and Europe.
In September 2019, Illegal Art presented its projects in Mexico City for the first time: The Last Word, Suggestion Box, What Color Are You?, and Measure Up (an installation commissioned by Arte Abierto). The four public art pieces were located within ARTZ, and Suggestion Box was activated at Arte Abierto and at different locations throughout Mexico City. Each piece seeks public participation as a collective creative experience.
Arte Abierto inicia su programa de mediación y comunicación educativa 2022 con una conversación entre la investigadora y escritora Irmgard Emmelhainz y Sebastien Noel de Troika, tomando la exposición No Sound of Water como punto de partida. Abordarán los temas presentes en este proyecto, como el Antropoceno, y harán diferentes lecturas y cuestionamientos (Materialist Realism / Philosophy of Matter / Art as Image).
Irmgard Emmelhainz transmitirá en vivo desde No Sound of Water en Arte Abierto.
