Mexicali BiennialMexicali Biennial
Join us for a discussion by transborder artist Guillermo Estrada and Rubén Ortiz-Torres. The artists will discuss Estrada’s current residency at the MXCL BNL LAB and themes around topics related to the border as a supernatural zone.
This event is part of an artist residency and exhibition, Guillermo Estrada: ALMENDROIDS, ALIEN & INDÍGENA on view through January 10 at MXCL BNL LAB. Light refreshments served. The artist discussion is free and open to the public. This project made possible with support from California Humanities, a non-profit partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Visit www.calhum.org. Additional support by Mellon Foundation and Teiger Foundation.
Guillermo Estrada, aka Rancho Shampoo is a multidisciplinary artist and performer who lives and works between Tecate, Mexicali, and San Diego. His work in installation, performance, music, and video explores borders, transcendence, and pluri-dimensional connections between the Earth, the Cosmos, and the Underground. He has exhibited and performed work in numerous venues, including the Museo Universitario de Arte Contemporáneo in Mexico City, Centro Cultural España in Mexico City, Museo Raúl Anguiano in Guadalajara Jalisco, and Coaxial Arts in Los Angeles. For the MexiCali Biennial’s 2023 program at the Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture in Riverside, he created an immersive installation centered on his concept “aliendígena” and staged a musical performance with the Indian Dub Orchestra. Estrada earned degrees in history from the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California (BA) and in studio art from the University of California, San Diego (MFA).
Rubén Ortiz-Torres is an artist who lives and works between Los Angeles and San Diego. Originally from Mexico City, he studied at Harvard Graduate School of Design, the Academy of San Carlos in Mexico City, and California Institute of the Arts (MFA). His work ranges widely across media: photographs, altered readymades, a feature film, 3D videos, large scale video installations, painting series, sculptures, customized cars, photocollages, performances, and curated exhibitions. Ortiz Torres has participated widely in solo and group shows, international exhibitions, and film festivals, and his work is held in collections including The Museum of Modern Art, New York; Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; and Museo Universitario Arte Contemporáneo, Mexico City. As part of the 2022/23 MexiCali Biennial program, his lowrider-inspired cart was featured in a public performance by VisRats Mobile (a.k.a. La Carcachita). He is a Professor in the Visual Arts Department at the University of California, San Diego.