Before becoming radical women: Latin American Women Artists 1915-1995 (Milwaukee Art Museum, 1995)

GLUZMAN, GEORGINA

Chattanooga

Conferencia; Southeastern College Art Conference (SECAC); 2019

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

In 1995 Latin American Women Artists 1915-1995 opened at the Milwaukee Art Museum. It was the first survey exhibition of art produced by women artists of Latin America presented in the United States of America. Curated by Geraldine Pollack Biller, the show included works by thirty-five women artists active in eleven Latin American countries. The aim of this paper is twofold: firstly, it aims to explore the analytical categories that were developed in this exhibition (?women?, ?Latin American art?, ?Latin American women artists?); secondly, it seeks to examine the inclusions and exclusions of the show, comparing the selection and understanding of the artists with the groundbreaking exhibition Radical Women: Latin American Art, 1960-1985, curated by Andrea Giunta and Cecilia Fajardo-Hill. I will ask and answer the following questions: which artists were presented in Latin American Women Artists 1915-1995?; what were the implications of the selection?; and, finally, did they reinforce certain stereotypes associated with Latin America and its art? I will argue that the focus on women artists did not alter radically the label ?fantastic?, often applied to Latin American art.