The Office of Cultural Projects, in collaboration with the Manuel Álvarez Bravo Photographic Center (CFMAB) in Oaxaca, is honored to present Mexipunx, a photographic exhibition by Rubén Ortiz Torres and curated by Laureana Toledo.
The images were originally exhibited in 1984 as part of the Jesus and the Mutants series at the Mexican Council of Photography. Mexipunx is an extended version of that exhibition, which now includes videos originally recorded in Super-8 and drawings of people that appear in the photographs. The exhibition presents vintage and recent prints designed specifically for the exhibition.
In his images, Ortiz Torres narrates his own history of punk from the capital of the country, unlike the photojournalist works of the countercultural movement of the time, he was part of that subculture and produced a self-representation without ceasing to document.
His photographs picture the first punks of the time, such as Guillermo Santamarina, nicknamed Tin Larín, where according to legend he became the first Mexican punk and then the curator of the Museum of Contemporary Art of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (MUAC). Also included are images of brothers Juan Carlos and Mario Lafontaine, members of the legendary duet María Bonita; the girls from Las Flores del Mal who wore vintage clothes from the 50s and 60; legendary underground scenes such as Disco Bar 9, a gay bar in the Zona Rosa, and the only and true punk bar: Tutti Frutti.
Along with this exhibition, La punción de la herida: Gráfica estudiantil de la Facultad de Artes y Diseño de la UNAM sobre el 68, will be exhibited in the William Hobi Hall at Taller OPC, in commemoration of the 50 anniversary of October 2, conformed by graphic work done by students and teachers of UNAM. This exhibition curated by Fernando Sánchez and René Contreras, in collaboration with Teacher Víctor Ríos, Production Coordinator at the Carlos Olachea Workshop, FAD Xochimilco, UNAM, and Teacher Fanuvy Núñez Aguilera, Professor of Engraving, FAD Taxco, UNAM .
Rubén Ortiz Torres is a professor of Visual Arts at the University of California at San Diego. He began his career as a photographer, printmaker and painter, but has produced over the years a series of works in a variety of media, including movies and videos, automobiles, and custom machines. His work has been included in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York; the Museum of Contemporary Art of Los Angeles, the National Museum of Art Reina Sofia in Madrid, and the Museum of Contemporary Art of San Diego, among others.
The Office of Cultural Projects (OPC) is an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of Contemporary Art through exhibitions, round tables, public art initiatives and educational services programs. It was born with the aim of contributing to the reflection on the contemporary sociocultural and artistic environment, with the vocation to share with the inhabitants and visitors of Puerto Vallarta. OPC works with different creators such as artists, architects, curators, academics and writers who contribute to the construction of our notion of the city and contribute to the cultural panorama linked to Puerto Vallarta but of global scope.
