Artistic Movements and Expressions of Resistance

The anti-imperialist response in Latin American art is not uniform; it is expressed through multiple currents and languages, each reflecting its specific context.

Mexican Muralism

This was one of the first and most impactful public art movements with a clear national and anti-imperialist project. After the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920), artists such as Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and José Clemente Orozco covered the walls of public buildings with visual narratives that glorified indigenous history, denounced exploitation, and openly criticized foreign intervention, especially from the United States. Their works were intended to educate and unify a people, creating an iconography of resistance.

Conceptual and Protest Art

In the 1960s and 1980s, amidst military dictatorships and the Cold War, art took on a more direct and urgent character. The Chilean artist Luz Donoso is a powerful example. After Pinochet's coup (1973), she co-founded the Taller de Artes Visuales and created works such as the "Huincha sin fin" series (1978), where she confronted the public with photographs of the political "disappeared," repeatedly asking "Where are they?". Her art was a tool of memory and direct accusation against state violence, often supported by external geopolitical interests.

Indigenous Resistance and Zapatismo

The struggle of indigenous peoples is central to Latin American anti-imperialism. The Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN), which rose up in Chiapas, Mexico, in 1994, is a political and cultural phenomenon. Its emergence, in protest against the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), symbolized a rejection of globalized neoliberal capitalism.

The Zapatistas use masks, poetic communiqués, posters, and murals as an essential part of their communicative strategy, making visible their struggle for land, autonomy, and dignity. Subcomandante Marcos, its main spokesperson, stated that the struggle was to have "a voice" and to "protect our past in order to have a future." Its distinctive aesthetic became a global icon of anti-colonial resistance.

New Media and Contemporary Art

Contemporary artists continue to address the legacy of imperialism through new perspectives, often focusing on its environmental and social impacts.

The Dominican Tony Capellán (1955-2017) created sculptural installations with plastic waste collected on Caribbean beaches. Works such as "Mar Caribe" (1996) transform the waste of global consumption into poignant commentaries on pollution, poverty, and the colonial history of the region. His work shows how the waste of the "first world" invades and degrades the territories of the "south." Latamarte