Artist reception for ASCO, photograph taken in Highland Park, CA. (Oscar Castillo Photograph Collection/UCLA Archive)
Chicano art collective ASCO will be featured in a new documentary that will premiere at South by Southwest on March 10.
The documentary is directed by Travis Gutiérrez Senger, with Gael García Bernal and Diego Luna serving as executive producers.
The 1970s art collective was founded by four teenagers from Garfield High School doing avant garde art that museums didn’t want to admit in their galleries.. Members Harry Gamboa Jr., Gronk, Willie F. Herrón III, and Patssi Valdez are featured in the documentary, reminiscing about their art and street performances in the one and half hour documentary.
ASCO was born out of East L.A. student walkouts and the Chicano Moratorium, bringing art into the movement.
“If you’re a Mexican or Chicano, you have this expectation to be this or that,” Senger told Artnet. “By taking a form and mutating it or giving it mobility, it’s a symbolic statement to break free from a singular way of defining yourself or being defined by other people.”
“ASCO: Without Permission” is screening at South by Southwest on March 10, 12, and 13.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.