Rodríguez Calero's Urban Martyrs Retrospective at El Museo del Barrio Blends Sacred and Street
From July 22 to December 19, 2015, El Museo del Barrio showcased 'Rodríguez Calero: Urban Martyrs and Latter Day Santos' at 1230 5th Avenue, New York. This retrospective included over one hundred pieces, such as paintings, collages, and acrollages—a term invented by Calero. It marked the second part of the Women Artists Retrospective Series, succeeding an exhibition dedicated to Marisol. Calero's art blends elements of Nuyorican street culture with Spanish Baroque and contemporary styles. Among the highlighted works were 'Saint Anthony' (1999) and 'The Apparition' (1994). The exhibition was set in a lengthy gallery adorned with yellow walls, and a bilingual catalog was provided, though some reproductions failed to capture the intricacies of the artworks.
Key facts
- Exhibition ran July 22 to December 19, 2015
- Featured over 100 works including paintings, collages, and acrollages
- Second exhibition in El Museo del Barrio's Women Artists Retrospective Series
- Artist coined term 'acrollages' for complex mixed-media technique
- Works combine photo collage, stencils, embossments, painting, drawing, and metal leaf
- Influences include Nuyorican street culture, Spanish Baroque, Picasso, and Kurt Schwitters
- Exhibition space designed to resemble a nave with yellow walls in collage section
- Bilingual catalog accompanied the exhibition
Entities
Artists
- Rodríguez Calero
- Marisol
- Picasso
- Kurt Schwitters
- Emilio Cruz
- Francis Bacon
- Gustav Klimt
Institutions
- El Museo del Barrio
Locations
- New York
- United States