José Guadalupe Posada (1852–1913) was one of Mexico’s most influential printmakers and illustrators. He produced an extensive body of imagery, from illustrations for children’s games to sensationalistic news stories that appeared in a variety of inexpensive penny press publications marketed to the country’s growing middle and working-class.
Posada is best known for his popular and satirical representations of calaveras (skeletons) in lively guises. These figures featured prominently on broadsides—cheap illustrated handbills—that were published for the Day of the Dead celebrations every November. Posada’s prints shaped generations of Mexican artists, among them the muralists Diego Rivera and José Clemente Orozco.
This exhibition features a wide range of prints and print media by Posada, fellow illustrator Manuel Manilla, and others, including calaveras, chapbooks, political prints, devotional images, and representations of natural disasters and popular events.
In conjunction with the opening of this exhibition, Guest Curator Diane Miliotes will conduct a presentation on the work of José Guadalupe Posada and his contemporaries in Art #133 on October 10, 5:00pm-6:00pm. This presentation and the following opening reception, held immediately afterward in the Natalie and James Thompson Art Gallery 6:00pm-7:30pm, are free and open to the public.
Exhibition organized by THE TROUT GALLERY / Dickinson College
LOCATION: Natalie and James Thompson Art Gallery
Art Building, San José State University
(Near 9th /San Carlos Streets)
EXHIBITION DATES: October 10 – December 15, 2017
OPENING RECEPTION: Tuesday, October 10, 2017, 6:00pm-7:30pm
GUEST CURATOR LECTURE WITH DIANE MILIOTES: Tuesday, October 10, 2017, 5:00pm-6:00pm
GALLERY HOURS: Monday – Friday, 10:00am-4:00pm and
Tuesday evenings 6:00pm-7:30pm
(and by appointment)
FURTHER INFORMATION: Aaron Wilder, Curator & Interim Director
aaron.wilder@sjsu.edu
http://gallery.sjsu.edu
