What do Batman, Superman, Iron Man and Spiderman all have in common? They’re all white dudes.
The Museum of Latin American Art has opened a new exhibit called “Artists Assemble,” which is committed to characters, events and stories traditionally excluded from mainstream comic book art and culture.
The exhibit, open as of July 17, will only remain available until Sept. 18, giving potential visitors one more week to explore how these forgotten works have tackled controversial socio-political issues and the stories of marginalized groups.
Instead of the typical movie franchise superheroes, museum-goers will see characters like Laura Molina’s The Jaguar – a Chicana law student from East LA by day and a Neo-Nazi fighting vigilante by night.
“I think that there has historically been a resistance to comics as an art form that is appropriate for museums,” said Gabriela Martínez, Curator of Education at MOLAA. “That mindset is quickly changing, thankfully.”
The gallery displays over 100 artworks by more than 50 different artists from Long Beach and the greater LA area. However, even artists located in Mexico, Perú, Argentina and Brazil have contributed their work. The art varies from sketches to comic books, prints, sculptures and video art.
“The exhibition includes the works of a diverse group of artists using comic books as a public forum,” said guest curator Esperanza Sanchez. “[The works] discuss problems and provide solutions within their community.”
Visitors can expect to experience the work of politically and socially conscious artists from underrepresented communities.
“The comics are always humorous and sometimes dark,” Martínez said. “But they all address either personal, social, or political challenges to those outside of the mainstream comics world.”
The MOLAA has hosted the Latino Comics Expo in the past and wanted to create an exhibit to engage some the participating artists as they planned to host the expo again this year.
MOLAA curators wanted to display works that focus on socio-political and economic issues related to undocumented migrants, indigenous rights and displacement throughout the Americas, as well as political corruption in the US and throughout Latin America.
“There are a lot of anti-consumerism pieces and a lot of stories about not fitting in,” Martínez said. “A few artists talk about growing up female in socially conservative migrant families. There are a few pieces about coming to terms with one’s sexuality and the fear of being rejected by one’s family and the society.”
This exhibit is bound to have something that its audience can relate to. So, broaden your comic book horizons while you still can and see some of these inspirational super-heroes that you probably didn’t even know existed.