Re: Cradle Of Jim Crow 2.0
Re: Cradle Of Jim Crow 2.0
Three Channel Video Installation, Digital Animation and Wallpaper
140.5" X 200.5"
2021
Installed on site at Mexic-Arte Museum, Austin, TX
from Sept. 17, 2021 — Feb. 27, 2022
as part of MX 21-Resistance, Reaffirmation & Resilience Exhibition.
Statement:
Menchaca has created a multi-media video installation responding to the abhorrent laws the Texas legislature has passed in 2021 that use the unconstitutional laws of the Jim Crow South as their framework. Pushed by conservative politicians in the Texas capitol, these laws reflect a desperate attempt by southern U.S. states to reverse the social progress made during previous Civil Rights movements and to reinstate the legalization of racial and gendered discrimination.
The proximity of this installation to the state Capitol speaks to the exhibition’s themes of Xicanx resistance, reaffirmation, and resilience. Menchaca has aimed to reinterpret the recurring coded elements within the biased Texas laws. These elements are represented as: repeating patterns, anthropomorphic deities, and abstract symbols that correspond with the writing systems of ancient Mexican and Pre-Columbian civilizations. Using digital software, the animated digital drawings will allow for entirely new interpretations of the conservative ideas. Using contemporary instruments to create an art installation critical of the Texas legislature, Menchaca continues the tradition of chronicling the heritage of the Latinx cultures in the state of TX.
Featuring Take A Look by Polly Anna, 2021
Additional vocals provided by Johnny Scott
