Catalina Parra

Catalina Parra (born 1940, Santiago, Chile) is a self-taught artist that uses photomontage to create powerful statements against political inequalities in the Americas, particularly in Santiago, Chile during the Pinochet Dictatorship.^[1]

Early life

In 1940, Catalina Parra was born into a renowned family of Chilean artists, like her father Nicanor Parra, all her family was known for protesting against the brutal violence of the Pinochet Dictatorship. Catalina Parra began her art after she moved to Germany with her German art critic husband Ronald Key.^[2]

Germany (1963-1972)

When Parra moved to Germany, she developed interest into the photomontage art technique. Her first work consisted on collages incorporating her drawings and printed material of personal significance^[3]

Chile (1970's)

Catalina Parra returned to Chile during a period of turmoil under the regime of General Augusto Pinochet. During her time in Chile, Parra, began to incorporate items from the news into her collages to convey messages of political oppression and violence in Chile.^[2] It was during her time in Chile that she created Reconstructions(Reconstructions); politically inspired collages in which Catalina Parra would stitch or join fragments of newspaper articles, photographs or advertisements together with thread, card gauze, and tape to form what she called Reconstrucciones (Reconstructions).^[2] During her time in Chile she held her first exhibit called Imbunches in 1977 this exhibit established Parra as a renowned artist.^[3] During her time in Chile she was also well known for contributing to the literary publications; Manuscriptos (aka. Manuscripts in English) and V.I.S.U.A.L.'^[2]

United States and Argentina (1980-Present)

In 1980, Parra received a Guggenheim Fellowship that allowed her to move to New York, United States. During her time in the United States she used American mass media as her new material.^[2] During this time she created pieces including Coming your way (Banff, 1994), The Human touch (1989) and Here, there, everywhere (1992). In these works, Parra critically examines military interventions as well as the empty promises of financial institutions and capitalist consumer society. She is most well known for her visual work USA, Where Liberty is a Statue (1987), a thirty second video that was played on the Spectacolor billboard in Times Square as part of the Public Art Fund project titled Messages to the Public (1982–1990). The art consisted of an animation using the words of her father, the Chilean poet Nicanor Parra. The piece questions the idolized American vision of freedom and liberty.^[2] During her time in the United States, Parra also taught in El Museo Del Barrio, an art school dedicated to teaching varying forms of art to disadvantaged youths.^[2] Between (1915–1995) she was recognized in the Latin American Women Artist Association, primarily for her role in educating disadvantaged youths and promoting minority rights.^[2]

In 2000, Parra, was given the position of Agregada Cultural de Chile en Argentina (Aggregate of Culture of Chile in Argentina), she worked in this position until 2009, when she once again returned to New York, where she currently resides.^[1]

Notes