AnniversaryOctober 30, 2023
70 years of the Museo Experimental el Eco
The Museo Experimental el Eco celebrates its seventieth anniversary with the opening of two emblematic exhibitions: "VOLUMEN EMOCIONAL: Sistemas Corporales" by Alberto Gutiérrez Chong and "Olivia Zúñiga: Sonora en el Silencio" by Bárbara Lázara. These two exhibitions capture central moments and features that have shaped the identity of El Eco.
El Eco was founded in 1953 by Mathias Goeritz and Daniel Mont, initially conceived as a space for artistic experimentation to accommodate proposals beyond Mexican muralism, which, at the time of its creation, was perceived as the official art. In this context, Goeritz, a Mexican sculptor of German origin, conceived El Eco as an opportunity to experiment artistically with habitable space. Throughout its history, El Eco has gone through different phases, starting as an artistic space and later transforming into a restaurant-bar and cabaret. After this stage, it served countless other purposes. Finally, in 2005, the Universidad Autónoma de México (UNAM) reclaimed and restored it, returning it to its original purpose and turning it into an exhibition space that showcase a diversity of artistic expressions.
For "VOLUMEN EMOCIONAL: Sistemas Corporales" by Alberto Gutiérrez Chong, the characteristic yellow, black, and gray walls of the museum were painted white, with the aim of making the constructed space resemble an architectural plan. The walls were labeled with traditional architectural elevations markings, straight and dotted lines, basic symbols, as well as the dimensions of the building. Alberto Gutiérrez Chong wanted to emphasize how the architectural volumes in El Eco were conceived as emotional volumes, in the words of Goeritz, "an experimental museum should begin its activities with an architectural experiment that produces human emotions within a modern concept, without falling into empty and theatrical decorativism."
The second exhibition, "Olivia Zúñiga: Sonora en el Silencio" by Bárbara Lázara, is the result of a detailed investigation of the personal archive of Olivia Zúñiga, a Mexican writer who was left on the margins of history. This project aims to highlight the significance of her work. The book "Los amantes y la noche," written by Zúñiga and illustrated by Goeritz, marked the beginning of the Eco editorial: Eco Ediciones and was the first work published under this label.
These two exhibitions will be on display until January 14, 2024, at the Museo Experimental el Eco, located at C. James Sullivan 43, San Rafael, Cuauhtémoc, 06470 Mexico City, CDMX, Mexico.
El Eco was founded in 1953 by Mathias Goeritz and Daniel Mont, initially conceived as a space for artistic experimentation to accommodate proposals beyond Mexican muralism, which, at the time of its creation, was perceived as the official art. In this context, Goeritz, a Mexican sculptor of German origin, conceived El Eco as an opportunity to experiment artistically with habitable space. Throughout its history, El Eco has gone through different phases, starting as an artistic space and later transforming into a restaurant-bar and cabaret. After this stage, it served countless other purposes. Finally, in 2005, the Universidad Autónoma de México (UNAM) reclaimed and restored it, returning it to its original purpose and turning it into an exhibition space that showcase a diversity of artistic expressions.
For "VOLUMEN EMOCIONAL: Sistemas Corporales" by Alberto Gutiérrez Chong, the characteristic yellow, black, and gray walls of the museum were painted white, with the aim of making the constructed space resemble an architectural plan. The walls were labeled with traditional architectural elevations markings, straight and dotted lines, basic symbols, as well as the dimensions of the building. Alberto Gutiérrez Chong wanted to emphasize how the architectural volumes in El Eco were conceived as emotional volumes, in the words of Goeritz, "an experimental museum should begin its activities with an architectural experiment that produces human emotions within a modern concept, without falling into empty and theatrical decorativism."
The second exhibition, "Olivia Zúñiga: Sonora en el Silencio" by Bárbara Lázara, is the result of a detailed investigation of the personal archive of Olivia Zúñiga, a Mexican writer who was left on the margins of history. This project aims to highlight the significance of her work. The book "Los amantes y la noche," written by Zúñiga and illustrated by Goeritz, marked the beginning of the Eco editorial: Eco Ediciones and was the first work published under this label.
These two exhibitions will be on display until January 14, 2024, at the Museo Experimental el Eco, located at C. James Sullivan 43, San Rafael, Cuauhtémoc, 06470 Mexico City, CDMX, Mexico.
