Art opening
Sat, July 21, 7pm
Mero Arte Contemporáneo
Zacateros 24


Barroso collection shown

Mero Arte Contemporáneo presents a selection of graphic works from the collection of Jesús Barroso. This collection represents an important cross section of contemporary artists with works from more than 108 Latin American artists.

On view will be a range of works from well-established artists such as Gerardo Cantu, José Luis Cuevas, Joy Laville, Damien Flores and more. This exhibition offers a cohesive representation of a very extensive collection of important artists working in Latin America today, and therein lies the importance of this collection.

Graphic art has had a continuous influence in Latin American art. Knowledge of graphic arts opens the door to a world of the visual language within a great works of art.

In this way, this exhibition recognizes these artists as printmakers and analyzes the graphic qualities of their works on paper while tracking their individual development. 

We can clearly see an art of great contrasts where positives and negatives are in a constant struggle to find equilibrium and harmony.

We can experience an art where form and content share equal importance, where an emerging light becomes a truth amidst the darkness of an honest artistic search for freedom of expression.

Art exhibit
Works by Jo Brenzo and more
Sat, July 21, 6–8pm
Magenta Gallery
Umarán 32

Magenta Presents Jo Brenzo and the Magical Radishes

Magenta Gallery welcomes its newest member, photographer Jo Brenzo, with a cocktail reception on Saturday, July 21. In this exhibition, Jo features her photographs relating to “The Night of the Radishes” festival in the city of Oaxaca, which has taken place on December 23 every year since 1897.

Artists carve specially grown, freshly harvested giant radishes to create elaborate scenes reflecting daily life or perhaps to make a political or social commentary about what’s going on in the country at the moment. Because of the ephemeral nature of the materials, the sculptures last only a short time. However, they are preserved by photographers like Brenzo. Images such as a nun with a pierced heart revealed on her breast or a wild-haired young punk-rocker are just a few of the whimsical and surreal–these figures are made of radishes, remember–photographs that will be shown in this opening reception. It’s a soul-filled documentation of the very best of outsider art.

“What draws me to the Radish Festival? I think it is the most magical thing in Mexico. There is a huge complexity—everything on the table is radishes. The artist’s heart and soul is in it, and the viewer is connected to the scenes, not just an observer. It’s almost mystical,” says Brenzo about this Oaxacan tradition.

In addition to her photography, she has been teaching at Bellas Artes (the National Art School of Mexico) for 15 years and founded the Academia of Fotografia in San Miguel in 1995. She leads travel photography workshops to the Radish Festival and other events in Oaxaca as well as to sites in San Miguel and Mexico City, including the Island of the Dolls in the floating gardens of Xochimilco. She has recently published a documentary book of photographs on this unique island together with writer Eva Hunter. Of her teaching, Brenzo says it might be a mission. If she can just connect one person to his or her passion and give them an opportunity to become part of the history of photography, she feels successful.

Even though she majored in art, not until the age of 30 and as a mother of four did Jo discover her talent for photography—“...that’s the nice thing about it, you can start later in life.” She switched her major from printmaking to photography at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and has stayed true to her love ever since. She considers her photographs of people as being psychological or philosophical, having to do with body language and showing how we reveal our true selves with gestures, not words.

When Jo Brenzo is behind the camera she only shoots what she is emotionally connected to. “It’s not so much what I see, as what I feel through the lens” that shows up in her work.

Come and share Brenzo’s deep passion for art and for Mexico at and enjoy the work of gallery members Rosa Torres (ceramics), Victoria Lynn Pierce (painting), Rebecca Peterson (embellished boxes) and Bonnie Griffith (collaged clothing and jewelry) at Galeria Magenta.