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After colonies from Europe occupied land in Latin America, an unmistakable imprint was left on the communities who remained. Places that became known as Brazil, Peru, Colombia, amongst others, developed their own culture. Old ideas, new ideas, and combinations of ideas came into fruition as they’ve survived on progression to cope with settler colonialism. Many of these concepts were taken from Euro-centric customs and "cannibalized" into Latin American systems. Art was no exception to this cannibalization, with influences that led to controversy. What is gained from European ideas has come with indigenous opposition, creating a labyrinth of artworks and opinions to go with them. Each of my sources has a connection with said European ideas, some exhibiting distaste, while others endorsement. These cases arose because of the constant element of communication between Europe and Latin America, whether it was by means of studying art in Paris, or exchanging letters with figures such as Leon Trotsky.

The question I have after all of this research is: are taking notions from imperial powers supporting Latin American empowerment, or assimilation? Being able to properly answer this may not be something I’m capable of–I am not one to speak for those in Latin America, considering I was born and raised in the United States. However, reading various sources on such matters has provided me with insight to achieve a greater understanding of the subject. So, I will do my best to formulate this project through utilizing the experiences of Latin American people while encouraging viewers to take my perspective with a grain of salt. It seems that cannibalizing European cultures has been able to hold a positive influence, as long as it is done with honesty, reclamation, and power brought to indigenous people. Examples of this done with varied doses of success will be displayed through primary sources and artworks.

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“The Anthropophagic Manifesto,” Oswald De Andrade, 1928 

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“The Anthropophagic Manifesto,” Oswald De Andrade, 1928 

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“The Anthropophagic Manifesto” (“Cannibalist Manifesto”) is an avant-garde poem that challenges the notion of European modernism and its place in Brazil. To “cannibalize” is to take apart another culture and consume it into the body of their own. As modernism from Europe rejected their own previous ideals, the fetishization of native Latin American cultures remained prominent. While taking inspiration from Tupi stereotypes, Oswald De Andrade wanted to give people something to talk about that was more than mainstream concepts from another continent. Coming from a place of Brazilian pride, this critiques the white narrative that was given to the indigenous people there–originating from its own form of cannibalization.

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Algumas ideais sobre as belas artes e a indústria no Imperio do Brasil

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Algumas ideais sobre as belas artes e a indústria no Imperio do Brasil

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Manuel José de Araújo Pôrto Alegre was a Brazilian jack-of-all-trades in his passion for art, writing, teaching, politics, and more. His higher education started at the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts in Rio de Janeiro. Soon after, he traveled all over Europe to continue broadening his knowledge through artistic endeavors. Pôrto Alegre eventually brought his studies back to Brazil and became involved in various projects and institutions. 1951 is when he published his opinion on Europe’s influence on art in Brazil at the time. Here, he presents arguments such as, “compare-se todos os ojbectos de sua industria, e vér-se-ha que elles vão de par com as suas idéas” (generally translating to: “compare all the objects of your industry, and see if they go hand in hand with your ideas”) (p. 109). This is asking people to question what colonization is ultimately encroaching on–if all the newer writings, architecture, resources, and art are going against what the indigenous peoples actually stand for. He mentions that the ancestors of Brazil would’ve never expected the natural beauty of Rio de Janeiro to become overtaken by transportation vehicles and houses. Despite this avocation, his lifestyle reflected his time in Paris–more than expected given the attitude he presents in his paper.

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Floresta brasileira was created with sepia on paper, portraying a Romantic body of work that emphasizes the magnitude of nature in comparison to humans. Pôrto Alegre’s views seemed to change over time, potentially veering on a side of hypocrisy. After spending time in Paris himself, Pôrto Alegre had acknowledged that people are leaving Brazil to prioritize countries other than their home. Pôrto Alegre was one of the first Brazilian Romantic painters, taking a part in a European-based movement. He advocated against industrial expansion in his paper, yet he also promoted the expansion of the Music Conservatory and the Pinacoteca. Although, his pieces admirably highlight the environments of Brazil, one example being this.

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Francisco Laso, Inhabitant of the Cordillera of Peru, 1855

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Francisco Laso, Inhabitant of the Cordillera of Peru, 1855

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Laso’s work reflected what would become indigenismo, supporting native culture without being exploitative the way other artists had done. In his realistic style of painting, he depicted Peruvian clothes and people of different races. This particular piece is a portrait of a man in indigenous attire who holds an indigenous ceramic sculpture, representing Peru before colonization. As it is painted through "academic" means, the subject itself is a nod to the roots of where they come from.

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Exposición Nacional de Bellas Artes, a critical brochure written by Carlos Miguel Pizarro in 1899, discusses the jury’s decisions at Colombia’s National Exhibition of Fine Arts that same year. Pizarro expressed the distaste of the exposition’s jury, explaining the different factors that embodied their decisions. One of those decisions was awarding a portrait of the president of Colombia during that time. This points to social hierarchy being a component of the jury’s settlements. An additional note was the fact that those judges believed art, Pizarro using the words of said judges, has a “moral” and “civilizing mission.” What is a Euro-centric outlook narrows the window of creativity within artwork, rewarding those who support their limited view of what proper art is. While Pizzaro had taken into account the fact that only the nominated works were made public in the beginning, he offered the public a separate analysis of those rulings, taking into account the original prejudice (p. 13). Despite the valid criticisms of the National Exhibition of Fine Arts, Pizarro spins this experience in a positive way by motivating those who were involved to do better, while uplifting the artists that were not originally supported.

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Levite Woman from the Ephraim Mountains, Epifanio Garay, 1899

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Levite Woman from the Ephraim Mountains, Epifanio Garay, 1899

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As an admired artist, Garay’s religious painting struck controversy in Colombia. The inclusion of a nude woman triggered a negative response from judges of the Exposición Nacional de Bellas Artes; further steps were taken to ban this piece, despite its religious roots. The repulsion of unclothed bodies was a European concept adapted into Colombia’s own. Critics like Pizarro disagreed with these ideas, as it greatly restricted multiple facets of their society.

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En el Museo gráfico del Hospital Larco Herrera de Magdalena del Mar

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En el Museo gráfico del Hospital Larco Herrera de Magdalena del Mar

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With various European developments making their way into Latin America, psychoanalysis and its cannibalized associations with art became a principal account throughout the 20th century. Ernesto More went to visit the Larco Herrera Hospital and speak with those involved–it was simultaneously a treatment center, art gallery, and museum for mental illness. People like More and César Moro made connections between Surrealist philosophies and the minds of the patients. Moro himself had talked to an alienated patient about his art, asking him to explain it, with the person’s response being: “Why are they going to have an explanation if I don't draw what I see, but what I feel!” (More, Ernesto, SEC. MANIFIESTO SURREALISTA). Additionally, the patients participated in their own community in order to maintain the institution. The museum was a means of displaying contraptions historically used against patients in asylums, while there was an additional inclusion of a gallery with the patients’ artworks. Such treatment provided a much needed safe space, leading to the artistic expressions of many patients. Eventually, links to the avant-garde and Surrealist movement are made here; connecting mentally ill, those precedingly seen as a lower class, with the most distinguished art developments.

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Untitled, Arthur Bispo do Rosário, 1930s-1980s

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Untitled, Arthur Bispo do Rosário, 1930s-1980s

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Arthur Bispo do Rosário was an Afro-Brazilian artist who created forms accompanied by fibers, embroidery, and common gadgets. While living in mental institutions, everything that he made was based on what the voices in his head instructed him to do. These voices came from angels who announced to him that he was the chosen one to build a new world, to which he must prepare before Judgement Day. A number of these preparations exhibited as sculptural pieces constructed from everyday objects to be saved, much like the situation of Noah’s Ark. The idea of divergent interpretations of reality, their validity, and the role of “reason” in all of it leans into the concept of Surrealism, while others made additional comparisons to Dadaism, another movement from Europe.

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Frida Kahlo, Self-Portrait Dedicated to Leon Trotsky, 1937

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Frida Kahlo, Self-Portrait Dedicated to Leon Trotsky, 1937

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While wearing traditional Mexican clothing, Frida holds a romantic letter. This specific painting is a portrait for Leon Trotsky, a Soviet communist revolutionary whom Frida had an affair with. Growing up with the after-effects of the Mexican Revolution, Frida Kahlo supported the communist movements in the Soviet Union as a Socialist herself. As depicted here, some of her work particularly reflects Mexican nationalism while also reflecting her political advocation, one that started in Russia.

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