Xavier Tavera Castro

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Xavier Tavera Castro
Born
Mexico City, Mexico
EducationMinneapolis College of Art and Design
Known forPhotography
Websitehttps://www.xaviertavera.com/

Xavier Tavera Castro (born August 5, 1971) is a Mexican photographer and artist.[1] He was born and raised in Mexico City[2] where he studied at the Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana. Tavera completed his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography from Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD) in 2014. Tavera received his Master of Fine Arts in Photography and Moving Images from the University of Minnesota in 2017. He taught photography at Augsburg College (2012–2016), the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (2016–2021), and is currently an assistant professor of art at Carleton College. Tavera's work has been exhibited at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, the Soap Factory, the Eide/Dalrymple Gallery at Augustana University, the Staniar Gallery at Washington and Lee University, the Athens Institute for Contemporary Art in Georgia, the Center for the Study of Political Graphics in Los Angeles, the Galeria del Hospital Maciel in Montevideo, Uruguay, and at ProjekTraum FN at l'atelier Glidden Wozniak in Friedrichshafen, Germany. Tavera received a McKnight Photography Fellowship in 2003 and his work has been recognized with OverExposureMN Grants,[3] Minnesota State Arts Board, and the Minnesota State Arts Board Artists Initiative.[4]

Early life and education[edit]

Early years[edit]

From an early age, Tavera showed interest in visual arts and started taking photography seriously as an art form at the age of sixteen.[5] At this early age, Tavera's work focused on portraiture and he commonly incorporated his family and friends into his photographs; a practice that he would maintain throughout his career. During these formative years, Tavera also became interested in events which brought people together such as community or identity-forming shows, such as reenactments of “La Pasión de Cristo'' or the creation of ofrendas. In these early photographs, taken with the family camera. Tavera also developed his interest in capturing portraits of strangers, the peculiar, and the absurd.

Education[edit]

Initially enrolled in law school in 1993 at Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana in Mexico City,[2] Tavera came to professional photography in 1996 when he was invited to work as an industrial photographer for a company in the United States.[5] The company offered to cover the cost of tuition at Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD), allowing Tavera to pursue an artistic path. When the company went bankrupt and failed to pay his tuition, Tavera dropped out of MCAD to seek employment. He later re-enrolled and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2014.[6]

Artworks[edit]

Tavera's photographs are inspired by mundane or fleeting interactions with strangers on the street, neighbors, and family members.[7] Tavera's portraits emphasize individuals who are often marginalized, frequently focusing on members of the Latinx community.[8] Tavera's work is based in his theory of photographic experience in which the process begins when the artist conceives an idea, continues over the course of multiple conversations with the intended subject (sometimes involving long-distance travel, culminating in one or more photography sessions, complete with the image post production. Tavera contends that the final image printed on paper is a byproduct or record of the photographic experience.[5]

Veteranas/Veteranos[edit]

Even as a child, Tavera exhibited great curiosity in Mexico's 201st Fighter Squadron (Spanish: Fuerza Aérea Expedicionaria Mexicana (FAEM) Escuadron 201), also known as Águilas Aztecas or Aztec Eagles which was a part of the Mexican Expeditionary Air Force that aided war efforts during World War II. Due to a lack of information on Escuadrón 201 and his personal interest in the subject, Tavera began seeking out veterans with the intention of documenting their lives and stories through photography. It was at this time that a friend of his, a journalist by the name of Alberto Luck, mentioned a documentary on which he had been working about Escuadrón 201.[9] Tavera was introduced to Captain Manuel Cervantes Ramos, a World War II veteran who Tavera  photographed in his home in Mexico City. This interaction allowed Tavera to get in contact with over a dozen Mexican WWII veterans, that he interviewed and photographed.[10]

With time, the project expanded to a more diverse group that included Chicano/a, Mexican, and Latino/a veterans who served in the United States military during various wars. Tavera gained access to members of VFW Post #5, started by a group of Latino/a veterans who settled in St. Paul, Minnesota.[11] While photographing these veterans along with their military memorabilia, he gained immense respect for their service, particularly moved by their courage and their fear of being forgotten.[12] Tavera placed emphasis on capturing their vulnerability and emotional expression. The portraits often depict the veterans in their uniforms, some displaying alterations to their clothes that represented an aspect of their identity, such as their heritage or their military affiliation. Tavera also recorded some of these meetings which he used to give context to the messages displayed in his photographs.[11] This body of work played a major role in his goal of recording the valuable history of Mexican, Chicano/a, and Latino/a veterans.[10]

From personal interviews to photographs from his work with veterans, Tavera collected a wide variety of information which he sought to preserve through the Minnesota Historical Society. Through the use of a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, Tavera organized all of his photographs, interviews, and general information into a large collection, ready for preservation.[10] After receiving Tavera's collection, the Minnesota Historical Society took interest in his work and set up an exhibition titled “AMVETS Post #5: Photographs by Xavier Tavera.”[11] The exhibition opened September 23, 2017 at the Minnesota History Center and ran for the duration of six months.[13] In the summer of 2020 he was able to publish a book with Cottage Industry, titled Nowhere To Go But Home where compiled all the portraits of the project and two essays by Andrea Lepage and Mike Soto.

Borderlands[edit]

Tavera's final year of his Masters in Fine Arts at the University of Minnesota coincided with the political turmoil concerning immigration and the Trump administration which inspired a new series of work for Tavera. Prior to starting his last semester, Tavera traveled the whole length of the United States-Mexico border to document the landscape and its inhabitants.[14] Drawing on his own memories of crossing the border and the knowledge that the border exists as a part of everyday life for Latinas/Latinos/Latinx living in the United States, Tavera photographed views from both sides of the border depicting the surrounding landscapes and portraits of people he encountered in the area. Tavera's intention with Borderlands was in finding the more personal, humane aspect of the region as this resonated deeper with him versus the constant politicization of the land.[5] Drawing on his previous work, he also began photographing deported veterans living on the border—many of whom were Mexican-born and served under various branches of the United States military as undocumented citizens. This aspect of Tavera's work seeks to bring veterans that have been cast aside to light.[14] Tavera exhibited selections from the Borderland series at ProjekTraum FN at l'atelier Glidden Wozniak in Friedrichshafen, Germany,[15] Kunsthaus Caserne in Friedrichshafen, Germany,[16] and the Staniar Gallery at Washington and Lee University.[14]

Mascaras[edit]

Mascaras is an ongoing photo series that consists of photographs dedicated to showing the intimate, often unseen, parts of a mask. Tavera photographs masks that are either owned by members from his community in Minneapolis or are kept in museum institutions as artifacts.[17] Tavera's goal with this project is to document the evidence of the people and the cultures that these masks belong to.[17] He takes photos of the backsides of the masks which would typically be placed on one's face, often during cultural celebrations. Tavera also documents the structures and serial numbers placed onto the masks by the institutions they are held in which shows evidence of a different type of transformation: personal and intimate object to museum artifact. Tavera exhibited selections from the Mascaras series at the Staniar Gallery at Washington and Lee University.[14]

Mexicaliens and vaqueros[edit]

While much of Tavera's photography features documentary-style portraits of members within his community, he also works constructing and staging photographic images. One of these series is titled Mexicaliens[18] in reference to the Biden administration's move to replace the word “alien” with “noncitizen” when referencing non-American citizens. The project aims to provide a humorous take on the label and build fantastical characters, or aliens, that have stories and superpowers of their own.[18]

Another part of Tavera's experimental work is labeled Vaqueras/Vaqueros, and its focus is on reinventing and reimagining the constructed Hollywood concept of the white cowboy as the lonely hero and the brown mustachioed villain. These projects serve as an extra creative outlet for Tavera to construct a fictional world of his own through portrait photography.

El Maciel Solo Exhibition[edit]

One important exhibition focuses on the people of the Hospital Maciel in Montevideo, Uruguay.[19] Tavera spent two weeks photographing over one hundred of the hospital staff. The photos were large scale portraits of the personnel who worked at the hospital.[19] He personally installed the photos of the doctors, administrative workers, nurses, and cleaning staff in one of the atriums of the hospital where the exhibition reception was held. The hospital photo collection had previously held portraits of the hospital directors and doctors, and Tavera aimed to dismantle professional hierarchies within the hospital by showcasing portraits of everyone who personally worked in the hospital.[19]

Exhibitions[edit]

Year Exhibition Name Gallery / Museum Location
2021 Being Public / Public Beingsa[20] Perlman Teaching Museum Northfield, MN
Chicano Latino Studies 50th Anniversary[21] CLUES Gallery[22] St Paul, MN
2020 The Weight We Carry (solo)[23] North East Sculpture Gallery Minneapolis, MN
Borderlands (solo)[16] Kunsthaus Caserne Friedrichshafen, Germany
2019 Cartography of Desire[24] Catherine G Murphy Gallery St Paul, MN
On the Edge / En el Filo (solo)[14] Staniar Gallery, Washington and Lee University Lexington, VA
2018 Borderlands (solo)[16] Projektraum Friedrichshafen, Germany
Memory Spaces[25] StartUp Friedrichshafen, Germany
Memories of the Future (solo)[26] Minneapolis Institute of Art Minneapolis, MN
Identity St Margaret's House Edinburgh, Scotland[14]
On Purpose (solo)[27] Katherine E. Nash Gallery, Regis Center for Art[28] inneapolis, MN
2017 Territorio Compartido Punto de Cultura Federico Ramirez Concepcion, Chile[14]
Wash Heights (solo) Victoria Theater Dayton OH
Stills and Motion (solo)[29] Eide/Dalrymple Gallery, Augustana University Sioux Falls, SD
Veteran@s (solo)[30] Minnesota History Center St Paul, MN
2015 Warhol Effect[31] Weeks Gallery[32] Jamestown, NY
100+ A Photograph For Every Year MIA[33] Minneapolis Institute of Art Minneapolis, MN
2014 From Here To There (three person)[34] Minnesota Museum of American Art St Paul, MN
2013 La Alameda (solo) MIRA Gallery, Minneapolis, MN
Calle Lake (solo)[35] Augsburg College Minneapolis, MN
2012 Los Cuatro Ases[36] Franconia in the City Minneapolis, MN
2011 El Circo (solo)[37] Runner Runner Gallery Minneapolis, MN
2010 Overexposure 40X5 Intermedia Arts Minneapolis, MN
2009 Day of the Dead[38] Steam Roller Prints Plains Art Museum Fargo, North Dakota
Farsas (solo show)[39] Weisman Art Museum Minneapolis, MN
2007 Nuestra Frida[40] Casket Building NE Minneapolis, MN
No Human Being is Illegal Center for the Study of Political Graphics Los Angeles, CA
2006 Pingyao International Photography Festival[13] Pingyao, China
Jerome Resident Printmakers[41] Highpoint Center for Printmaking Minneapolis, MN
2005 El Otro Americano[13] Instituto Chileno Norteamercano de Cultura Valparaiso, Chile
Politicos Americanos Instituto de Cultura Valparaiso Valpaiso, Chile
2004 New Photography: McKnight Photographic Fellows[42] Duluth Art Institute Duluth, MN
Art on the Plains 7[43] Plains Art Museum Fargo ND
Picante Athens Institute for Contemporary Ar Athens, Georgia
2003 L Factor[44] Exit Art New York, NY
Franconia Sculpture Franconia Sculpture Park Shafer, MN
2002 A Day with the Dead on Lake Street[45] Chicago and Lake Minneapolis, MN
2001 Frontera Lake Street[46] The Minneapolis Institute of Arts Minneapolis, MN

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Xavier Tavera". In Progress. Retrieved 2021-03-26.
  2. ^ a b Zuege, Unsie (2020-01-23). "Minnesota Landscape Arboretum's Reedy Gallery showcases Latinx artists". SWNewsMedia.com.
  3. ^ "Initiatives | OverexposureMN". overexposuremedia.org. Retrieved 2022-08-14.
  4. ^ "Artist Initiative". Minnesota's Legacy. Retrieved 2022-08-14.
  5. ^ a b c d Rupersberg, Nicole (2019-01-02). "Photographer Xavier Tavera Documents the Latinx Community from One Border to the Other". Creative Exchange.
  6. ^ Tavera, Xavier (2017). Interview with Andrea Lepage." In Xavier Tavera: Stills and Motion. Sioux Falls, SD: Eide/Dalrymple Gallery/Center for Western Studies. pp. 2–42. ISBN 9780931170690.
  7. ^ "MN Original – Xavier Tavera". Twin Cities PBS. 2013-04-27. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
  8. ^ Martin, Liv (2021-04-14). "Three George Floyd Square Billboards Ask Us to Remember and Resist". Minnesota Monthly.
  9. ^ "Veterana/os Exhibit Series – Portraits by Xavier Tavera". In Progress. 2020. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
  10. ^ a b c Corey & Virga (2020). Nowhere to Go But Home. Minnesota: Minneapolis: Cottage Industry Arts. p. 1.
  11. ^ a b c Rosenbaum, Nancy (2017-11-20). "Photographing Minnesota's forgotten Latino veterans". MinnPost.
  12. ^ Rosenbaum, Nancy (2015-11-13). "Photographing Veteranos and Veteranas". Latino USA. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
  13. ^ a b c on, Richard Rosivach. "AMVETS POST #5: PHOTOGRAPHS BY XAVIER TAVERA AT THE MINNESOTA HISTORY CENTER". Columbia Alumni Association of Minnesota.
  14. ^ a b c d e f g Turman, Erica (2019-09-02). "Staniar Gallery Presents Xavier Tavera's 'On the Edge/En el Filo'". The Columns.
  15. ^ Xavier, Tavera; Glidden, Felicia; Lepage, Andrea (2019). Borderlands. Krumbach, Bavaria: Onlinedruckerei e.K.
  16. ^ a b c "Xavier Tavera Borderlands at Kunsthaus Caserne – ProjekTraum FN". ProjekTraumFN. 2020-01-31.
  17. ^ a b "Critical Conversations Series Presents: Xavier Tavera". Chicano & Latino Studies. University of Minnesota College of Liberal Arts. 9 May 2019.
  18. ^ a b Denehy, Lily (2019-03-15). ""Shifting Borders" addresses family separation, the need for activism". The Mac Weekly.
  19. ^ a b c "Plan promueve bienestar de pacientes y funcionarios del Maciel". Subrayado. 2013-09-04.
  20. ^ "For Faculty – Carleton College". www.carleton.edu.
  21. ^ "¡PRESENTE! 50 Years of Chicano & Latino Studies". Pollen.
  22. ^ "Past Exhibitions – Exhibition title: ¡Presente!: 50 Years of Chicano & Latino Studies". Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio.
  23. ^ "The Weight We Carry". Northeast Sculpture Gallery Factory.
  24. ^ "Cartography of Desire". The Catherine G. Murphy Gallery.
  25. ^ "Xavier Tavera". ProjekTraum FN.
  26. ^ "Memorias del Futuro (Memories of the Future)". Minneapolis Institute of Art.
  27. ^ Eler, Alicia (2018-11-09). "University of Minnesota takes a selfie: Photo show celebrates 150th anniversary". Star Tribune.
  28. ^ Espeland, Pamela (2018-09-11). "'On Purpose: Portrait of the Liberal Arts' to open CLA celebration at the U". MinnPost.
  29. ^ Lepage, Andrea (2017-03-10). "Xavier Tavea:Stills and Motion". academia.edu.
  30. ^ "Mexican and Mexican-American Veterans from St. Paul's West Side Featured in New Photography Exhibit". Minnesota Historical Society. 2017-08-03.
  31. ^ "The Warhol Effect". The Post Journal. 2015-02-21.
  32. ^ WRFA (2015-01-30). "Arts on Fire – Patricia Briggs from Weeks Gallery Discusses "Warhol Effect" Exhibit". WRFA 107.9.
  33. ^ "El Mas Fuerte (The Strongest One) by Photographer: Xavier Tavera". Minneapolis Institute of Art.
  34. ^ Combs, Marianne (2014-08-29). "MN Museum of American Art show explores Green Line life". State of the Arts.
  35. ^ "Xavier Tavera: 'Calle Lake'". Star Tribune. 2013-01-30.
  36. ^ Xenos, Stephanie (27 April 2012). "'Four Aces' at Franconia in the City". Mn Artists.
  37. ^ Abbe, Mary (2012-08-12). "Art: Portraits by Xavier Tavera, and Miles Mendenhall". Star Tribune.
  38. ^ "ArtOrg : Xavier Tavera". ArtOrg.
  39. ^ "Exhibition – Xavier Tavera – Farsas – Upcoming.org Archive". archive.upcoming.org.
  40. ^ Carlson Gustafson, Amy (2007-11-29). "Walker show inspires artists to express their 'Frida experience'". Twin Cities Pioneer Press.
  41. ^ "Jerome Emerging Printmakers 2005–2006". Highpoint Center for Printmaking. 26 May 2006.
  42. ^ Fallon, Michael (2004-09-14). "So Good, It's Almost Eerie: McKnight Fellows in Photography". Mn Artists.
  43. ^ "High Visibility Virtual Artist Talk – Plains Art Museum". Plains Art Museum.
  44. ^ Cotter, Holland (2003-11-28). "ART REVIEW; A New Latino Essence, Remixed and Redistilled". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331.
  45. ^ "Grupo Soap Del Corazón". ArtOrg.
  46. ^ Abbe, Mary (2001-10-26). "All Over the Map". Star Tribune.
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