On June 16,17 and 18 this year in Guadalajara, the city in the unforgettable Hombre en Llamas by Jose Clemente Orozco and the sculptures of Gonzalo Gortazar, among other things, mounted the Third International Forum on Contemporary Art Theory, as a parallel activity to the Guadalajara Art Expo(International Contemporay Art Fair FITAC). The event was sponsored by Fomento Arte Contemporaneo A.C. and organized by Guillermo Santamaria.
The general theme: The Language of Art and its New Proposals, developed out of months of work in which the several more specific topics were addressed.
Conceptualism and Formalities: A Review of the Art Theory of the Last Decades. Experimentation in Relation to the Demands of the Art Market: a look at the complex relations between new artistic proposals and stablished market channels. Quotid ian Obligations Given new Meaning in Contemporary Expression: leaving uncertainties about the active universe and the problems that have become evident in new and different artistic proposals. Mass Communication Resources in the Language of Art. a theme that analyzed the societies world of consumer images, their appropiation, transformation and the conflicts generated by their impact on contemporary art. Legitimating of New Mediums: talked about the complex relation between the mass medias and the grand institutions that make certain forms of art legitimate.
Finally, the Aesthetic Illusion: a reflection upon today's art using an article by Jean Baudrillard as a launching point.
Parallel to the International Art Fair various exhibitions were mounted, like that of Spanish artist Nacho Criado; Support Point, the New Artistic Narrative in Colombian Contemporary Art ;sculptures by Thomas Glassford; a selection of art videos from Canada and an exhibition of Contemporary Art from Quebec.
The Forum really became an important meeting space for artists, critics and curators from different parts of the world. A place to reflect upon the fundamental themes in contemporary art, but above all, upon those which have not yet been sufficiently discussed or analyzed. What it left behind, if not define conclusions, was numerous delayed uncertainties for the critics. An experimental space for ideas that could move art theory in the future.
NATALIA GUTIÉRREZ