The Fernando Gamboa Archive is one of Mexico’s most important artistic archives. Mauricio Marcin’s research at the repository has resulted in Las ideas de Gamboa (The Ideas of Gamboa), an editorial project that underlines the possibilities of diffusion as well as exhibition of this archive of modern art. The publication deals with specific case studies that exemplify how cultural promoter Fernando Gamboa’s curatorial precepts resulted in exhibitions and cultural and administrative management that increased the holdings of Mexican museums and contributed to the professionalization of museography in Mexico. The publication includes texts by Alfonso Reyes, Michel Onfray and Carlos Molina, among others.
Las ideas de Gamboa (Gamboa’s Ideas) is a three-part exhibition exercise derived from a collaborative research project carried out by Fundación Jumex Arte Contemporáneo and Promotora Cultural Fernando Gamboa, the institution dedicated to preserve and manage the Fernando Gamboa archive. The first component of the exercise is a printed volume, which through documents from his archive, exhibits some of Fernando Gamboa’s many cultural enterprises: his exhibitions, his work to develop Mexico’s public archives, his efforts to professionalize the study and practice of museography in Mexico, and his many research travels. The second part of this project is an exhibition entitled Gente mirando arte (People Looking at Art), which occupies the space destined for the Museo Jumex bookstore. Benches and plants have been placed throughout the bookstore to create spaces to rest and wait, surrounded by reproductions of photographs from exhibitions organized by Fernando Gamboa. On the benches, visitors will find the exhibition catalogue for their use. This space can be thought of as both an exhibition in itself and an addition to the printed material. The third component involves a series of events: screenings, roundtables and workshops. These three components offer different ways to display and make public some of the information contained in the Fernando Gamboa Archive. However, this archive is so extensive that it is only barely represented by this exercise.
This work has been possible thanks to the generous collaboration and support of Patricia Gamboa, Director of Promotora Cultural Fernando Gamboa whose tireless work has enabled the conservation of Fernando Gamboa’s archive.
Organized by: Mauricio Marcin
Images from original works in Promotora Cultural Fernando Gamboa.