Federico Cuatlacuatl
Papalotes en Resistencia
Year: 2024
Material: Wood, adhesive tape, string
Dimensions: 100 x 80 x 80 cm
Edition: Unique
Mexican kites called papalotes (Nahuatl: papalotl, butterfly) are cultural practices in indigenous communities reflecting local cosmologies and sustainability. Federico Cuatlacuatl, who grew up in the USA as the child of undocumented immigrants from a community in Cholula, Mexico, builds kites as objects of agency and tools for resistance against the inhumane immigration policies in the USA and other Western nations. The kites ’smuggle’ their resistive powers through their beautiful and delicate structure with bright colours while at the same time standing for the preservation of cultural identity and empowerment of indigenous communities who are threatened with the erasure of culture and language both in Mexico and in exile. As objects that rise into the sky, a space that knows no discriminatory boundaries, they represent a freedom and spiritual anchoring reaching beyond the human scale. They are an appeal for solidarity and humanity beyond borders.
Federico Cuatlacuatl (*1991 in Coapan, lives in Charlottesville, Virginia) studied at Ball State University & Bowling Green State University and works with multimedia productions. His works have recently been part of exhibitions Museum of Art Såo Paulo in Brazil; the London Film Festival in the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London; Bonn Museum of Modern Art; Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art, Contemporary Arts Center New Orleans; Museum of Contemporary Art Arlington; Kode Art Museum; Mexico National Museum of Anthropology / and will be on view at KINDL Centre for Contemporary Art; Arsenale Nord, Arte Laguna Exhbition; UCLA Fowler Museum; Max Ernst Museum; Mexico City, UAM Metropolitan Gallery; Tucson Museum of Art; The Sculpture Center Cleveland. He has been granted the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Professional Fellowship; Santa Fe Art Institute Residency; Arte Laguna Special Prize – Exhibition; Stiftung Künstlerdorf Schöppingen Fellowship.
This year, as a homage to the rebellious power of the wind, we are presenting kites designed by nine artists. These will be showcased, flown, and subsequently offered as Jahresgaben during the anniversary celebration of the Dortmunder Kunstverein on November 30, 2024. The project was developed in collaboration with the artist Moritz Englebert, kindly supported by Stellfeld & Ernst GmbH.