Medula Negra of Xalapa

Xalapa, Veracruz is high in the mountains of Eastern Mexico. Also spelled Jalapa, its citizens are proud to be called Jalepenos like their famous peppers. Most travelers visit Xalapa not to see contemporary prints, but to stand in awe before the colossal Olmec heads. After seeing the awesome Olmec heads, I visited two young up-and-coming printmakers. Sebastian Fund and Javier Arjona are not yet out of college and run a vibrant printmaking studio, Medula Negra. Javier translates the name as "Black Bone Marrow." He is a 25-year-old former medical student, so he should know. Javier says the name signifies they are "black as printer's ink at their core." He looks like a young doctor, he speaks English and is the more serious of the pair. In fact, his grandfather founded a medical school in Oaxaca. Javier studied at open studios in Oaxaca as a young man. He learned drawing with Rene Almanza, then printmaking at Pata de Perro (Dog Leg) studio, then the Rufino Tamayo studio. He is now in his final year of printmaking studies at the University of Veracruz. Sebastian Fund is 28 and looks like a skateboarder, lanky with dark blonde dreads. Sebastian's parents are artists who immigrated to Mexico from Argentina when he was a small child. He has exhibited work in the best juried print shows in Mexico. He says his most influential teachers are Salvador Cruzado and Per Anderson of the nearby La Ceiba Grafica. (Deb Chaney wrote about La Cieba's residencies for Printeresting here.) Sebastian won a prestigious grant in 2010 - The Grant for Young Creators from the State of Veracruz. Veracruz has a long tradition of supporting artists. In 1902, the 26-year-old Diego Rivera's first trip to Europe was financed by a grant from the Governor. Each year the state supports promising artists from varied disciplines, one dancer, a musician, a poet, essayist, etc. Sebastian's award for printmaking amounted to 500,000 pesos, nearly $40,000 in U.S dollars.

In addition to state awards Mexico's federal government offers an additional 200 Young Creator grants annually. This generous artist grants system has it's critics who insist the system is designed  to tame Mexican artists. This is not the case with Sebastian. His new work deals with difficult socio-political issues including migration, homelessness, and even narco-trafficking.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIcGdDxXEQM

  Sebastian's current project Huellas Lejanas (Distant Footprints) can be seen in Pablo Roma's video above. Huellas Lejanas begins with Sebastian physically deconstructing abandoned shoes he finds in the street. He inks and prints the imploded shoes creating poignant relics of nameless individuals. He amps up the metaphor by juxtaposing banker's oxfords on the same page with peasant sandals and cheap plastic shoes. Sebastian plowed his grant money into Medula Negra. They both manage to sell some prints. They spent 25,000 pesos on a used etching press with a 32 by 60 inch bed and had it trucked 300 winding mountain miles from Oaxaca. They invested in a professional website, video production, and slick black on black business cards. Javier shared his 2012 woodcut series Metal Para Sordos (Heavy Metal for the Deaf). The imagery remixes comic book typography and abstract forms in a rough cut version of Pop Art. He uses the cheapest sort of 2-ply plywood. Asked if he had ever tried Japanese shina, he said,  "This is Mexico!" How about linoleum ? "I love wood." he said. Lately he is working on anonymous portraits, small editions done in  the 'placa perdida', or reduction print method.

Javier explains his recent projects in this video by Adolfo Gurrola (in Spanish):

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Hip3g9qfVY

  The pair tend to do their own distinct personal experimental projects and assist each other when printing on the press. That will have to change this fall. Sebastian is heading to Havana, Cuba for an artist's residency at ISA, Instituto Superior de Arte. Javier is gearing up to print works in Sebastian's signature monoprint style while he is away. They both love Xalapa, but have a long-range dream of a Medula Negra studio in Oaxaca, Mexico's print mecca. They recently did an experimental residency there, printing in relief with glass at Gorrila Gallery.  Wherever they settle, the want Medula Negra to be a place international printmakers come to work. Beginners? "We hope not, " they laughed, "only the best!" It is shame young artists of Mexico are not better known in the U.S. It is far easier for them to visit Europe because of our restrictive visa process. I came to be interested in Mexican prints via political works pasted on outdoor walls. Medula Negra's print output is more fine art oriented. They want their work hanging inside and well as outside. Their optimism, despite the extremely limited market for art is inspiring. I am always amazed that for less than the price of a mass-produced red velvet sombrero in Cancun's airport, one might purchase a work of art from a young creator. I returned from Mexico with a PVC pipe filled with 20 small prints on loan from Medula Negra in my duffel bag. Medula Negra's small prints will hang in Kutztown University's Rohrbach Library Gallery beginning on Sept. 16, Mexico's Independence Day. Maybe you can't visit Kutztown or Xalapa. Take a virtual studio tour on the Medula Negra blog. Even if you don't speak Spanish, the sound tracks are catchy, and the prints are a feast for the eyes. Photo credits for the two black and white photos: Tirso PérezBookmark / Share / Print

3 Responses to “Medula Negra of Xalapa”

1. Kevin McCloskey says:

   September 5, 2013 at 6:12 am

   Tirso Pérez gets photo credit for the black and white portraits of Sebastian and Javier above.

2. Medula Negra of Xalapa | Illustration Concentration says:

   September 17, 2013 at 6:33 pm

   […] studio and put in long hours at the press. I wrote about Medula Negra for the online  journal, Printeresting. They lent me a batch of their small works to exhibit at Kutztown University’s Rohrbach […]

3. Jimena Ramos says:

   September 23, 2013 at 3:01 pm

   ¡Que bien compañeros!
   Fregones ambos 😀
   ¡Felicidades!