Paisaje

In the mid-19th century, Latin American landscape painting underwent a profound transformation. Moving away from the European Romantic tradition—characterised by dramatic, idealised, and often non-specific depictions of nature—artists across the region embraced a more documentary and observational approach. This shift reflected a growing interest in scientific accuracy and the particularities of place, rather than abstract notions of the sublime or purely aesthetic topography.

In Mexico, José María Velasco (1840–1912) became a central figure in this transition. His work is notable not only for its technical sophistication but also for its ability to bridge the historical with the contemporary. Velasco depicted the landscape as both a site of natural beauty and a space of political and cultural significance, capturing the dual forces of disappearance and renewal that shape both nature and nationhood. His legacy laid crucial groundwork for later generations of artists to regard the landscape not as a backdrop, but as an active and contested space.

“Paisaje”, curated by Dexter Dalwood, takes inspiration from this historical pivot, exploring how contemporary artists, photographers, and filmmakers across Latin America continue to engage with the landscape as a vital and politically charged genre. Far from being neutral or passive, land becomes a conceptual arena, a space in which to examine themes of memory, displacement, belonging, and environmental change.