I know that
many of you will not probably be able to read this post. However, after
watching Bomb it! I really wanted to share this with you. I will keep it brief.
I could not stop thinking about graffiti I have seen many times, so I asked
my sister to send me these pictures. They were taken in Quito, Ecuador, just a
few blocks away from my house. This graffiti was painted about two years ago in
front of the National Assembly (The Ecuadorian Congress). The graffiti has a
message that reads El amor no tiene género (Love has no gender), and it
shows a heterosexual couple -at the center- and two homosexual couples kissing.
The graffiti painting has been
deteriorating over time. However, if you look closely, you will clearly note that
there are some transgressions and erasures made to specific parts of the graffiti.
The mouths, the kiss of homosexual couples were scratched, and more and
more, they have been erased. Also, the two women that are kissing have a painting
scratch on them as well.
As we saw
in Bomb it! urban art, and more specifically, graffiti, have been a powerful
tool of resistance and expression for those marginalized. In that context, I
think that these images are very thought-provoking and open a space for debate
and reflection. On the one hand, I believe that it is worth considering how
these transgressions reflect the stance of some parts of the society regarding issues
like gender equality, LGBTQ+ groups, and freedom of expression. It is important
to consider that Ecuador is still a very traditional and conservative society
when it comes to social issues and equality. Although Ecuador is a secular
country, most people are Catholic, and it is important to understand that most
social dynamics related to gender and race are also deeply related to the
legacies of colonialism that shape social structures and race/gender
expectations. However, this makes me think about what the effect of transgressing graffiti would be like this in, say, the walls near Baker Center, that
serve as a place for expression through graffiti.
On the
other hand, I think that there are two specific elements that make these
transgressions more impactful. One is the fact that the kiss, the mouth, is
the element that is transgressed. It is not the entire couple, but only the
kiss, the expression of affect, of placer, that contests gender expectations
and that expresses the right for individuals to choose who they love. This, for
me, is a very symbolic way of sustaining the repression of human affects and
emotions like placer, love, and of course, voice. A famous capoeira Mestre -Mestre
Pastinha- once said: “Capoeira e tudo o que a boca come (Capoeira is
everything that the mouth eats). This phrase makes me think that the mouth is
an element of interaction with our senses and other things that create
connections for us. A kiss, food, our voices. Finally, it is worth considering
also how the couple of two women has a scratch, how, it might seem, it is an
effort to also send a message about another deep and worrying problem in Latin
American societies, and in the world in general, which is violence against
women. Only in 2021, until November 25, 172 women were killed in Ecuador as a
product of femicide.
These are
some thoughts that I wanted to share through this space. Graffiti can certainly
be a way to express and contest current social norms, and, at the same time, it
is worth thinking bout how other elements and members of the society also
struggle to sustain oppressive systems. The questions, maybe, should be about
why is it that these systems are sustained? Why is equality, in all its forms,
so difficult to achieve? The use and transgression of this graffiti in
particular visibilizes those contesting positions in society.
Happy end of the semester, everyone!
The art looks lovely, despite the vandalism. Was this done illegally, or was it a commissioned mural? I ask because I'm absolutely shocked that this has been allowed to stay up so long so close to the capitol building. Was it painted to celebrate the legalization of gay marriage?
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I just made a post before coming here, in which I was pretty harsh on the people in Bomb It!, but this here is just the kind of example that shows what I was talking about. This is beautiful and in good taste, but it's been partially ruined by vandals.
Another question: "El amor no tiene genero!" seems to have all of the green letters scraped off--but only the green ones. Is that in anyway significant? Does that change the spelling in any significant way?
Hi Julio!
ReplyDeleteI thought this post was great and I love that you had a mural in mind that you hadn’t seen in so long that you could relate to this class. I think this is such a cool piece of art and a great form of retaliation that makes the message so clear, especially so close to government buildings where many people who pass this every day are very likely to disagree with the message.
This was a great tie in to ‘Bomb It!’ and made me think of the contradiction between street art like the mural that you shared and billboards you can see along the roads in Ohio with a completely different message. You often see billboards driving on highways in Ohio with messages like “Marriage is between a man and a woman” and it made me think about in Bomb It where they talked about the difference between paid art and advertising and graffiti. Both are different opinions on the same topic but since the billboard that is only promoting heterosexual marriage fits the agenda of the people who sold the space and ties into a higher agenda, it is allowed on a billboard for millions of people to see when they drive by. Something like the message on the mural you shared would never be allowed on a billboard because, although it is just a different view on the same topic, it doesn’t fit the higher agenda and would never be seen on a space like that.
The space that street art is made it so important and makes a huge impact on the people who see it. I thought this was a really great post!
Hi Julio,
ReplyDeleteI love the visual language of this mural and I wish there was more of it. It's incredibly heartbreaking to see how someone could erase this expression of love and vandalize art that many LGBTQ members go to for comfort. Creating art that the public is accessible to is important for many communities and groups. To answer your question, I personally feel that equality is hard to achieve in all forms because of the lack of inclusivity and people wanting more power over spaces. I really hope one day equality in all sectors can be achieved. I really enjoyed this post, Julio. Thank you for sharing your thoughts!