Tag: mexico

Postcard from Queretaro, Mexico: Queen of the night, monarch gems and more

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Colorful postage stamp featuring monarch butterflies, designed by Michael Parsons in 1988.

Above: Night-blooming cereus, or Queen of the Night, in the garden of La Casa de los Ladrillos

Late this past summer in Queretaro, shimmering jade-green pendants ringed with golden beads clung to patio walls of a casa particular where we stayed with a friend. Gleaming gems sheer enough to reveal the treasures growing within – golden wings emerging to flutter and feast on flowers before joining the millions migrating to nearby Michoacan.

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Postcard from Queretaro, Mexico: MACQ confronts contemporary topics

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Above: “Waiting Has a Price,” Rodney Zelenka, 2021

Visiting this past summer, I found myself awestruck by the contemporary political and social issues tackled by exhibitions at the Museum of Contemporary Art of Querétaro (MACQ). Although housed within the walls of an ancient convent, the museum’s international art is far from the conservative colonial paintings long associated with the city.

“Incomprehensible Realities,” a show by Panamanian artist Rodney Zelenka (1953-), delivered the universal plight of migrants to the forefront with the powerful precision of a karate chop, to be expected from a painter with a Black Belt. Many of his surrealistic works featured suitcases, shoes, hats – things that get left behind – executed in bright primary colors normally associated with happiness set against a backdrop of gray splotches resembling abstract gravestones.

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Postcard from Queretaro, Mexico: Strolling around an outdoor gallery and historic center

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Above: “Aurora Reyes Flores, First Woman Muralist of Mexico,” by Itandewi and Raquel Estrada

In commemoration of International Women’s Day in March, 100 women spent a weekend applying their designs to 100 screens mounted on the perimeter fence of Alameda Hidalgo. Organized by Santiago de Queretaro’s Secretary of Culture and Nueve Arte Urbano, “Exposicion Colectiva M100” paid tribute to historical figures who had contributed to the struggle for equal rights for women in Mexico. We were fortunate to stumble across the exhibition saluting impressive women as portrayed by talented young artists during our short March visit there.

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