Llamado de obras artísticas para la tapa de la Revista Canadiense de Estudios Latinoamericanos y del Caribe

Desde que asumí la dirección editorial de la Revista Canadiense de Estudios Latinoamericanos y del Caribe en 2004, intenté darle un mayor espacio al pluralismo idiomático canadiense (aumentando el uso del francés) e hispanoamericano (incluyendo material en castellano y portugués).

Pero más allá del contenido, quise también darle a esta publicación académica una forma más acorde con la América Latina actual. Esto significaba salirse de ciertos estereotipos y clichés folklóricos, para poner el acento en la creatividad y diversidad cultural que caracteriza al continente. Por eso, inicié la costumbre de reproducir en la tapa de cada número una obra artística realizada por un creador latinoamericano contemporáneo.

Les di prioridad a artistas de origen latinoamericano que residen en Canadá, ya que se trata de una buena manera de subrayar los vínculos entre el norte y el sur de América.

Quisiera ahora abrir una búsqueda de obras para ilustrar los dos números del año 2008. A través de este medio, lanzo entonces un llamado a creadores latinoamericanos que trabajen en Canadá, o a quienes conozcan a alguno de ellos, para que propongan obras gráficas (pinturas, dibujos, grabados, etc.) o imágenes (de esculturas, murales, etc.) para la tapa de la Revista Canadiense de Estudios Latinoamericanos y del Caribe.

Simplemente, deben dejar en este blog un comentario con los datos y el enlace (link) al sitio en que la obra se encuentra, o bien enviarme un archivo en formato jpg (mi dirección de e-mail se encuentra aquí). No se trata de un concurso formal, pero consultaremos con especialistas y también recabaremos la opinión de los lectores de este blog.




LAS TAPAS RECIENTES:




The picture on the cover shows an oil painting (El Extranjero, “The Foreigner”) by Mariana Semino. She has a background in theatre stage setting and worked at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires from 1993 to 1997. Semino left Argentina in 2002 and settled in Montreal. Her most recent oil paintings have been exhibited at Chapman University in California, Galerie d’Art St-Ambroise in Montreal, and Galería El Puente in Buenos Aires. This is how the artist explains her creative process: “As I start painting, persons, animals and objects are shaped on the fabric. Everything is mixed. If I’m lucky, a certain balance appears; if that doesn’t happen, and if I see it, I start all over again.”







The picture on the cover shows an oil painting (El Fuego, “Fire”) by Alejandro Boim. The artist was born in Argentina in 1964. He immigrated to Canada in 2002 and currently lives and works in a Montreal suburb. Boim is a graduate of the national School of Fine Arts of Buenos Aires and holds a licence in Visual Arts from the University of Paris. Winner of many prestigious prizes, his works have been exhibited around the globe. Boim received Argentina’s National Painting award in 1996 and 2000, and in 2001 he was awarded top prize at the Buenos Aires Drawing Contest.









The picture on the cover shows a collage (“Untitled”, 1990) by Norberto Majlis, an Argentinean-Brazilian-Canadian artist. He has had 11 solo exhibitions, and participated in many collective art exhibitions in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Canada, France and Italy. He obtained the first prize for prints in the 29th Art Salon of the State of Pernambuco, Brazil, several awards in Italy, and an award in the Art Contest of the Pierrefonds Cultural Centre of Montreal. Majlis immigrated to Canada in 1996.











The picture on the cover shows a fragment of one of Sergio Otero Miranda’s ofrendas (altars to the dead). Otero Miranda’s work with calacas (handmade skeleton figurines) builds on a fascinating Mexican tradition. Religious and mythical symbols, everyday effects, and personal mementos are combined in a complex visual narrative. Emotion, humour, sorrow, and fright are part of the mix. The artist was recently in Canada to show his calacas and conduct workshops at the Canadian Museum of Civilization.











This issue's cover reproduces a piece from Helena Martin's Faites Trois Souhaits exhibition. Her work deals with the relationship between consumption and superstition. Helena Martin was born in Cartagena, Colombia. She now lives and works in Montreal.