GRÁFICA AMÉRICA
Mar. 3 — Sept. 1, 2019
Instituto Gráfico de Chicago and Bandolero Press, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Mater Dolorosa / Grieving Mother, 2019, Linocut, 22 x 30 inches, Courtesy of the artist
CARLOS BARBERENA
(Nicaragua/United States, b. 1972)
Carlos Barberena de la Rocha is a Nicaraguan-American printmaker, founder of Bandolero Press (est. 2009) and La Calaca Press (est. 2010), and co-founder and member of the Instituto Gráfico de Chicago (Chicago Graphics Institute, est. 2010), a printing collective based out of the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago. A self-taught artist, Barberena creates relief prints that examine the effects of historic and contemporary political events throughout the Americas, with his recent portfolios exposing the violence endured by citizens of Nicaragua. Mater Dolorosa depicts Liseth Dávila holding an image of her fifteen year old son, Alvarito Conrado. Álvaro joined the student protests to bring water to his peers and was shot in the neck by a sniper. Denied medical attention he bled out from his injuries. This piece was created in solidarity with AMA (Association of the Mothers of April), a women’s group demanding justice for student martyrs murdered by the police and paramilitary groups during the recent political protests against the repressive Ortega-Murillo regime. Barberena’s work has been exhibited throughout the United States, Central America, Estonia, France, and Spain.