The newest exhibit at the Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) by Long Beach-based artist Narsiso Martinez is an ode to the hardworking farmworkers that provide the nation with food.
“They are essential when it comes to our sustenance, our food, the only ones on the frontlines cutting the vegetables, fruit that we eat, whether at home or at restaurants,” Martinez said. “It’s important to at least acknowledge that these people exist and they too are humans and they deserve equal opportunities.”
Martinez worked in the apple orchards of Eastern Washington for nine years, using the money he made to pay his way through college. He explained that despite their invaluable role in society, many farmworkers struggle to access healthcare and transportation.
The work included in his exhibit “Rethinking Essential” juxtaposes scenes of working class farmworkers against well-known brand names of multi-billion dollar corporations. He first began exploring this concept while taking a graduate program at Cal State Long Beach, painting a mango tree on a piece of cardboard that had a brand name printed on it.
Throughout the exhibit “Rethinking Essential,” the faces of farmworkers framed or partially obscured by baseball hats, masks and hoodies are overlaid against brands of produce corporations such as Sunkist, California Strawberries and more.
“All of them are a real person,” said MOLAA curator Gabriela Urtiaga. “They are the protagonists of the work of Narsiso.”
Martinez and Urtiaga worked throughout the pandemic to put this show together, beginning their collaboration in 2020.
The pieces included in the exhibit touch on various subjects: pesticides, the experiences of women farmworkers, harsh weather conditions and more.
In his four-part series “Fruit Catcher I – IV,” he drew farmworkers with ink and charcoal on a background of gold leaves on the inside of California Strawberry boxes.
In a vertical video projected on a gallery wall, a farmworker grimaces as he hurriedly picks apples off a branch and another farmworker kneels to strip grape bunches off vines.
Individual portraits of farmworkers line another wall. Each one is depicted on semi-transparent paper on top of cardboard covered in the designs of different produce brands.
On the opposite wall, numerous flattened cardboard boxes create a makeshift canvas on which scenes of farmworkers in the fields are depicted on either side of a larger-than-life portrait of a Latinx woman. Above her portrait is a painted black college graduation cap with a gold tassel.
“This fabulous show is really important because it’s not only an aesthetic experience, but also the artwork of Narsiso is a philosophical proclamation and we can find a lot of stories in all the artwork that he created for the show,” Urtiaga said.
“Rethinking Essential” will be on display at MOLAA for the next six months. MOLAA is open Wednesdays through Sundays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free on Sunday and $15 Wednesday to Saturday. In a year, the exhibit will move to the Institute of Contemporary Art in San Diego.
