FOCUS ON LATIN AMERICA project

Location: Orme Lewis Gallery
Dates: September 6, 2014
to December 28, 2014
CALL FOR ENTRIES:

FOCUS LATIN AMERICA: ART IS OUR LAST HOPE

Mail Art Exhibition at the Phoenix Art Museum

October 1 to November 2, 2014

Mail art has a rich and varied history in Latin America. Arte correo (and arte correio) began in the region in the mid-1960s with the pioneering efforts of such key figures as Edgardo Antonio Vigo, Graciela Gutiérrez-Marx, and León Ferrari in Argentina; Clemente Padín in Uruguay; Guillermo Deisler in Chile (and later Bulgaria); Dámaso Ogaz in Venezuela; Manuel Marín, Pedro Friedeberg and Felipe Ehrenberg in Mexico; and Leonhard Frank Duch, Unhandeijara Lisboa, and Paulo Bruscky in Brazil, to name just a few. On the occasion of the exhibition Paulo Bruscky: Art Is Our Last Hope at the Phoenix Art Museum in Arizona, Vanessa Davidson and John Held Jr. are co-curating a mail art exhibition entitled Focus Latin America. Centered around the theme “art is our last hope,” the curators seek to revive dialogue about the challenges facing artists living in Latin America and the utopian projects they have historically undertaken to fuse artistic practice with social engagement. Created in 1983, Bruscky’s artwork Art Is Our Last Hope was envisioned as a billboard piece consisting solely of those five words. How have art and life in Latin America changed since he issued that proclamation? What meanings does this notion engender in Latin America in the 21st century?

THEME: Focus Latin America: Art Is Our Last Hope

Artists are invited to submit work exploring the themes of utopia, dystopia, and the grey areas in between with a special focus on Latin America. Mail art, artistamps, artists’ books, and other artworks that can be mailed and relate to these themes are encouraged.

POSTMARK DEADLINE: September 1, 2014

EXHIBITION DATES: October 1 to November 2, 2014

FORMAT: Work must be sent directly through the postal service. Please apply postage directly to your work.

TECHNIQUE: All techniques and mediums accepted including mixed media, collage, montage, sculpture, painting, printmaking, photography, etc.

NON-RETURNABLE. NO ENTRY FEE. ALL WORK WILL BE SHOWN.

PARTICIPATING ARTISTS: All participating artists will receive an exhibition brochure. Please include your name and mailing address with your submission.

MAIL ENTRY TO:

Curator of Latin American Art

Phoenix Art Museum

1625 North Central Avenue

Phoenix, Arizona

85004, USA

SYMPOSIUM: October 8th, 2014

This exhibition will be accompanied by an International Mail Art Symposium with a special focus on Latin America. This event will take place at Phoenix Art Museum on October 8th, 2014, from 6 to 8 pm in Singer Hall, with the participation of John Held Jr., Mauricio Marcin Álvarez, and Vanessa Davidson. The symposium is free and open to the public.

PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING GUIDELINES FOR PARTICIPATION:

· Artist agrees that Phoenix Art Museum may photograph and use images of their submission for press materials, social media, publications, and educational use (both in print and online).

· Photography by the public (for personal, non-commercial use) will be permitted

· Artist agrees that they will not receive any compensation, financial or otherwise, from Phoenix Art Museum or the Archives of American Art for their submission.

· Phoenix Art Museum, its respective officers, employees and agents, will not be responsible for any damage, loss or theft of submitted artwork nor will Phoenix Art Museum (or any other entity) be responsible for insuring the artwork.

Your submission to the exhibition indicates that you agree to the above conditions