Art: The visual arts sector: needs and proposals

MEXICO CITY (apro).- Among the various meetings that have been held during the electoral period between the visual arts sector and officials of the “Let’s keep making history” coalition, the Dialogue for Culture stands out. “Art in Mexico” Forum, organized by the art journalism project “Las Picudas” in collaboration with Estudio Marte, and broadcast last Thursday, April 11 on the Facebook live platform.

Produced from the interest shown by the Morenoist senator Susana Harp Iturribarría – in charge of the cultural sector in the Dialogues for Transformation – in knowing the needs of visual artists, the Dialogue stood out for the plurality of the participants and the concretion of its objectives. proposals.

Made up of 25 participants, mostly outstanding and transgenerational creators who work in different media, the event also featured gallery owners who stand out for their unconventional commitment – such as Salón Silicón, which specializes in art by women and members of the community. LGBTQ+–, and a curator who, although he knows the scene, has dedicated himself in recent years to observing it from a distance.

As in other forums, artistic education, social welfare and support for creation were recurring concerns. With respect to education, three aspects stood out: the proposal to design programs for all stages of public education based on knowledge of art pedagogy, the requirement to hire teachers of professional excellence for the university training of artists, and the need to foster an artistic appreciation that includes sexual diversity.

Health services, pension, housing loans and prompt payment for artists and workers in the sector were needs that were constantly mentioned without proposing shared economic participation initiatives that would allow them to be implemented. However, a request that must be taken into account is the one raised by the artist and gallery owner Olga Rodríguez regarding the vulnerability of the physical and mental health of the LGBTQ+ community.

In the context of support for creation, in addition to requesting transparency in the selection of scholarship recipients and not granting scholarships to creators who have sales for the amount of the incentives, the insistence on having promotion and marketing programs was correct. for the works produced. Eréndira Esquivel, owner of the Epifanía gallery, proposed generating links between scholarship holders and gallery owners that would lead to the organization of exhibitions, sales and auctions, in different galleries.

To energize the market, the convenience of having fiscal incentives for galleries and entrepreneurs interested in forming collections was expressed. With respect to non-conventional galleries, after drawing attention to the instability in which they operate even though they are essential to boost creative and commercial plurality, the need to have government support that facilitates their permanence was expressed.

The implementation of foreign policy programs that internationalize artists was a request from the young painter Erick Saucedo. The need to diversify the museum offering to include a greater number of creators, respect the vocations of museums, implement coexistence activities between artists and the public, and strengthen the presence of contemporary painting in museum venues, were proposals from the painters. Teresa Velázquez and Ulises García Ponce de León.

And finally, two of the most relevant mentions: the deterioration of technological creation and the need to boost it again, as Archangel Constantini pointed out, and the particular state experienced by women artists. In addition to not having a governmental support structure for artists who are mothers – as mentioned by multidisciplinary artist Gabriela González Leal – they also suffer from power relations that are rarely mentioned.

Interested in safeguarding women’s cultural rights, the urban illustrator Bixablú (Alejandra Atrisco) proposed both the constitution of a women’s council that dialogues with the authorities, and the creation of an exclusive scholarship scheme for women that includes artists from various economic strata. The latter is relevant because, as she herself commented in another forum, the artistic medium operates with class differences.

And finally the proposal of curator Edgardo Ganado Kim: cancel the Payment in Kind program and have artists pay their taxes with money, just like all citizens. A pertinent initiative that clearly disturbed some participants.

The recording of the forum is on Susana Harp Iturribarria’s FB.