Carlos Montes de Oca, for example, takes his findings out of context and presents them with poetic texts in boxes of impeccable craftsmanship. Other artists working with a different type of recycled materials have developed a “memory of the past” by searching for lost and found objects. The newspaper constructions of Andres Vio are a good example of this trend, creating an intertwining of contemporary art’s uncertainties and forms of expression related to Chile’s living conditions. The recycling of discarded materials evokes both ecology and meager resources. This attitude contrasts with some of the new ecological artists that use their art for the vindication of ancient cultures, particularly the Mapuche. These early landscape artists showed little interest in Chile’s ancestral civilization, reflecting the relative absence of indigenous culture and pre-Columbian past compared to other Latin American countries. Chilean art began with landscaping artists who worked in the European tradition with an elitist bent, as Chileans searched for their own identity in the last century. In a sense, this ecological movement is a subtle return to Chile’s artistic past, but with a twist. The clay art of Zinnia Ramírez, Ana María Wienecken, Leo Moya and Norma Ramírez reflect the increased use of organic materials as part of this newfound ecological sensibility. This globalized vision may also account for a number of ecological groups that have recently appeared on the artistic scene. A crisscross of traditional and conceptual changes occurs as a product of a globalized world.

There is an interweaving of elements and artistic expression. The use of interactive multimedia has attracted a considerable number of young Chilean artists who explore the possibilities of combining painting, photography, found objects and video in their installations. Painting does not escape the conceptualists’ scrutiny it is often questioned as a means of artistic expression.Īt the same time, technological developments have made it possible to incorporate new elements of artistic expression. These trends are supported by a great number of art schools that are very keen on new aesthetical expressions. There is a resurgence of conceptual art, in which theorical discourse has great relevance. Topics such as nudity, eroticism and homosexuality are no longer forbidden. The liberation of morés and customs greatly influences artistic production. In addition to the contemporary mockery of consumerism, much of today’s artistic expression of social concerns deals with lifestyle and identity. Yet social concerns have often been on the periphery. An incipient muralist movement in the 1940s, stimulated by the Chilean sojourn of Mexican muralist David Alfaro Siqueiros, and the 1960s’ “art of denunciation” somehow contributed several artistic ways of interpreting the aftermath of the Pinochet coup (see below). At the beginning of the last century, the so-called Generación del 13 used painting to highlight social concerns by depicting local customs. The degree of social consciousness in art in Chile has varied in intensity over time. While many artists mock the consumer society and the search for easy and quick satisfaction, few concern themselves with the poverty, unemployment, and social and economic inequality that is part of modern Chile. Later, the artists produced another exhibition, Si vas para el Mall (If you go to the mall). An example is the well-received 1999 exhibition by Bruna Truffa and Rodrigo Cabezas at the National Fine Arts Museum, Si vas para Chile (If you go to Chile), taking its title from a well-known traditional folk song and making fun of consumer culture. Instead, some vent their criticism on the economic model, the free market and the consumer society. Only a few artists focus on the political and social context. They look to the future with a critical and constructive view, without hatred.

Rather, this new generation of artists seek to understand the recent past without a sense of guilt or victimization. Chile’s contemporary artists do not cling to any particular ideology.

Paisaje chileno matilde perez