OaxaCAlifornia: Through the experience of the duo Tlacolulokos
MAR. 1 - NOV. 8, 2020
Online Exhibition
Tlacolulokos (Mexico, Dario Canul b. 1986 & Cosijoesa Cernas, b. 1992) - Smile now, Cry later, 2017. Acrylic on canvas, 177 x 469½ inches. MOLAA Permanent Collection.
This exhibition by Oaxacan artistic duo Tlacolulokos, Dario Canul y Cosijoesa Cernas, showcase the murals that participated in the project Visualizing Language organized by The Library Foundation of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Public Library for the PST LA: LA project that occurred in 2017.
These paintings consider the relationship between the city of Los Angeles and the Zapotec communities of Oaxaca and California through the visual arts, education, social activism and literature.
Oaxacan migration has had a large impact on local culture. As a result, it is said that California is also Oaxacalifornia; this term describes a binational culture, a region both real due to the large migrant population, but also imagined. It transcends territorial and national divisions and describes not only a continuous flow of people, but also a network of symbols, and of a culture constantly reinventing itself, secured by strong networks of solidarity and belonging.
These murals are now part of the MOLAA Permanent Collection and will continue to be available to the public at the museum as part of an exhibition to showcase their relevance within the context of Latinx communities in California.
-Gabriela Urtiaga, Chief Curator
Credits & Sponsors
MOLAA is generously supported, in part, by the Robert Gumbiner Foundation and by a grant from the Arts Council for Long Beach and the City of Long Beach.
