Arts & Culture Archives - Page 12 of 27

How a Mall Became a Prison – and a Symbol of Venezuela’s Collapse

Reading Time: 4 minutes

The tragic history of Venezuela’s El Helicoide speaks to the promise and privation of a nation in decline.

Colombia’s 96-Year-Old, Crowdfunded Pop Star

Reading Time: 3 minutes

For decades, Magín Díaz’s musical influence went unrecognized. Now, Grammy nominations in hand, he’s making up for lost time.

Music Review: Juancho Herrera’s [i]Gaviero[/i]

This article is adapted from AQ’s print issue on peace and economic opportunity in Colombia. Maqroll the lookout, the wayward sailor of Colombian writer Álvaro Mutis’ adventure stories, is a natural wanderer, a charming scoundrel living “on the edge of laws and codes.” He is also the inspiration for Venezuelan guitarist and songwriter Juancho Herrera’s … Read more

AQ Top 5 Latin American Art Activists: Lucia Cuba

This article is adapted from AQ’s Top 5 list of Latin American art activists Correction appended below When Lady Gaga sat for a recent interview to promote her new perfume, the lines of text printed across her dress may have received more attention than the fragrance itself. The text was Article 6 of the Peruvian … Read more

AQ Top 5 Latin American Art Activists: Angélica Dass

This article is adapted from AQ’s Top 5 list of Latin American art activists The first thing Angélica Dass saw upon entering the world was a camera. The daughter of an avid hobby photographer, the click of the shutter was a common theme in her childhood. So, too, were conversations about race. Her father is … Read more

AQ Top 5 Latin American Art Activists: Danilo Maldonado

Reading Time: 2 minutes

He endured persecution to become one of Cuba’s most recognized graffiti artists.

AQ Top 5 Latin American Art Activists: Daniel Arzola

This article is adapted from AQ’s Top 5 list of Latin American art activists As Daniel Arzola stood at an awards ceremony in New York last June, the theater broke into applause. The actor Tituss Burgess had just recognized the 28-year-old illustrator for “creating change by creating art,” comparing his impact to that of the … Read more

AQ Top 5 Latin American Art Activists: Edel Rodriguez

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Known for his raw depictions of Donald Trump, this Cuban artist sees parallels between his past and present.

Film Review: Kékszakállú

This article is adapted from AQ’s print issue on peace and economic opportunity in Colombia Gastón Solnicki’s Kékszakállú defies easy categorization. Billed as the Argentine director’s first foray into narrative cinema, this dreamy sun-kissed poem of a film feels indebted to his work in nonfiction filmmaking. With little regard to a standard plot, Kékszakállú offers … Read more

Book Review: Euphoria and Failure of Greater Brazil

This article is adapted from AQ’s print issue on peace and economic opportunity in Colombia Once upon a time, back in the long-ago mists of, say, 2012, Brazil was still seen as a benign force in the world. Other countries, from Namibia to Peru to Mozambique, were seduced by its lively democracy and admirable record … Read more

Book Review: Return to the Dark Valley

This article is adapted from AQ’s print issue on peace and economic opportunity in Colombia The only thing we can do is tell stories and believe that one day we will be saved by them,” says the narrator of Colombian novelist Santiago Gamboa’s nightmarish new thriller, Return to the Dark Valley. The narrator, known only as the Consul, … Read more

Destinations

Trump Deportations Hit Immigrants With Strong U.S. Roots

This article has been updated It didn’t feel much like a homecoming when Luis Fernando Ortiz, 22, stepped off the plane in Mexico City after a decade away. His wrists and ankles were rubbed raw, chained for the duration of a 12-hour journey by bus and plane from Kentucky. His car, apartment, and family – … Read more

Tijuana Is for (Opera) Lovers

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Leave the stereotypes aside. Tijuana’s annual Ópera en la Calle is a symbol of the city’s rich and evolving cultural identity.

Trump’s Border, As Seen on TV

This article is adapted from AQ’s special issue on the U.S.-Mexico relationship. To receive AQ at home, subscribe here. Those looking for affirmation of President Donald Trump’s “bad hombres” idea of the border are more likely to find it in fiction than in fact. Through much of its history, Hollywood has portrayed U.S.-Mexico relations through a lens of antagonism, or … Read more