April 2 to May 1, 2010 Dios Nunca Muere the visual politics of transmutation in contemporary Oaxacan art José Arnaud Bello | Alfonso Barranco Sánchez Ana Belén Paizanni | Arian Dylan | Moisés García Nava Joel Gómez | Mariana Gullco | Daniel Guzmán Luis Hampshire | Saúl Hernández | Dr. Lakra Morelos León Celis | Roberto López Flores Saúl López Velarde | Rolando Martínez Rosa Vallejo | Jessica Wozny Deluge Contemporary Art, 636 Yates Street, Victoria Open Space, 510 Fort Street, Victoria Deluge Contemporary Art and Open Space are proud to present Dios Nunca Muere: the visual politics of transmutation in contemporary Oaxacan art. Featuring the work of 17 artists from the region, the exhibition is notable for the presentation of established artists with celebrated international reputations (Daniel Guzman, Dr. Lakra) with a younger generation of emerging and mid-career artists, the majority of whom have not exhibited in Canada. Dios Nunca Muere explores the seismic shift in contemporary art practice in Oaxaca, Mexico over the last two decades. The work of these artists -- both individually and collectively -- parallels and reflects widespread social, political and economic changes in the region. Informed by such social and material conditions, this new wave of artist/provocateurs is dismantling the prevailing hegemony of the Romantic artist/auteur in favour of collaborative approaches, social practice and self-examination. As they embrace the area’s unique geographical isolation and historical reputation as a ground zero for resistance, transformation and revelation, the artists in this exhibition do so through an international perspective and critical dialogue with the art world at large. Curated by Deborah de Boer (Victoria) and Luis Hampshire (Oaxaca), Dios Nunca Muere is the first exhibition of its kind to engage with a sporadically recognised, but generally unheralded group of artists in order to provide a unique and immersive experience of a vitally important but virtually occult chapter in the contemporary art history of Mexico. Dios Nunca Muere is accompanied by a bilingual catalogue with essays from both Mexican and Canadian contributors. The exhibition will tour Mexico in 2010/11.