The Wallach Art Gallery’s exhibition, Disobedient Spaces, delves into Lotty Rosenfeld’s artistic interventions that subtly destabilized authoritarian power structures. Rosenfeld, born in Santiago, Chile, in 1943, was deeply influenced by the political climate of her youth. Her seminal work, “Una milla de cruces sobre el pavimento” (One Mile of Crosses on the Pavement, 1979), initially executed on Avenida Manquehue and later near the presidential palace during Augusto Pinochet’s regime, involved transforming dashed traffic lines into crosses using white tape. This act became a poignant tally of the dead, the disappeared, and the silence orchestrated by the state.
Throughout the 1980s and beyond, Rosenfeld’s crosses appeared in various locations, from the Atacama Desert to Washington, DC, maintaining their politically charged essence. Her video piece “I – +” (1987) juxtaposes her street interventions with state-controlled broadcasts, creating a cross that interrupts the visual narrative. The phrase “Esta línea es mi arma” (This line is my weapon) frequently appears, underscoring Rosenfeld’s approach to resistance.
Disobedient Spaces also highlights the collaborative networks that influenced Rosenfeld’s work, including partnerships with Cecilia Vicuña and Diamela Eltit. Rosenfeld co-founded Colectivo Acciones de Arte (CADA), participating in actions like “Para no morir de hambre en el arte” (How not to die of hunger in art, 1979), which involved redistributing milk—an act laden with political symbolism in Chile’s socio-economic landscape under Pinochet.
CADA’s initiatives, like the NO+ (“No more”) campaign, invited public participation, allowing citizens to voice their demands. The exhibition includes reprints of campaign materials, highlighting the importance of collective action in Rosenfeld’s methods. Her resistance was not merely oppositional but aimed at creating spaces for dissent by subverting state control.
Lotty Rosenfeld: Disobedient Spaces is on display at Wallach Art Gallery (615 West 129th Street, West Harlem, Manhattan) until March 15. Curated by Natalia Brizuela and Julia Bryan-Wilson, the exhibition underscores how Rosenfeld’s artistic praxis opened new avenues for political engagement and visibility.
