La Revolución (painting)

La Revolución
ArtistFabián Cháirez
Year2014
MediumOil on canvas
SubjectEmiliano Zapata
Dimensions40.5 cm × 30 cm (15.9 in × 12 in)
LocationMuseu de l'Art Prohibit Collection, Barcelona
OwnerTatxo Benet
Websitemuseuartprohibit.org

La Revolución[a] is a 2014 painting by Fabián Cháirez. Measuring 40.5 cm × 30 cm (15.9 in × 11.8 in), the oil-on-canvas work was first exhibited at the Galería José María Velasco in Mexico City between 2015 and 2016. It depicts Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata nude in a provocative pose, wearing a pink sombrero and high heels made of pistols, seated on an erect horse. The author views the piece as a reinterpretation of Zapata's image that positions him within the struggle for sexual minorities.

In 2020, the artwork was displayed at the art exhibition Emiliano. Zapata después de Zapata, at the Palacio de Bellas Artes, where it was selected as the image for its promotional poster. During the exhibition, the artwork was embroiled in media controversy due to debates over the non-hegemonic representation of Zapata. His descendants took legal action against Cháirez and the museum.

In January 2020, La Revolución was acquired by Tatxo Benet and added to his Censored Art Collection and is displayed at the Museu de l'Art Prohibit Collection, in Barcelona, Spain.

Description

La Revolución is a 40.5 x 30 cm oil painting on canvas depicting the Mexican revolutionary leader Emiliano Zapata nude and riding a white horse. The figure wears a pink charro hat and a sash in the colors of the Mexican flag (green, white, and red) across his torso. His legs, positioned over the horse, resemble those of a woman, and he wears high-heeled shoes with pistol-shaped heels. The white horse, shown mid-leap, is portrayed with an erect penis.[2][3] The artist Fabián Cháirez explained that he wanted to "resignify [Zapata's] image and bring him into the fight for sexual marginalities".[2]

Exhibition

La Revolución was exhibited at the Galería José María Velasco in Mexico City in 2015 and 2016. A mural of the painting is also featured at El Marrakech, an LGBTQ bar.[4]

The art exhibition Emiliano. Zapata después de Zapata, organized by the National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature (INBAL) between 2019 and 2020, opened on 26 November 2019 at the museum of the Palacio de Bellas Artes, in Mexico City, and ended on 16 February 2020.[5] The exhibition featured photographs, paintings, various contemporary and modern images, as well as essays, that creatively explored the memory of Zapata. La Revolución was chosen as the promotional image for the event.[2]

The depiction of Zapata, commonly seen as a masculine figure, with feminine characteristics challenged the hegemonic masculine sensibilities of people in Mexico. It sparked debates across various platforms, initially on social networking services and mass media outlets, and later in public spaces, creating two opposing camps both supporting and opposing the artwork. On one side, supporters of Cháirez advocated for freedom of expression, arguing that art should provoke and confront the country's machismo. On the other, critics considered the work offensive to the memory of Zapata.[6]

On 10 December 2023, a group of protesters opposing the artwork gathered at the Palacio de Bellas Artes to express their discontent. The demonstrators, mainly Zapatistas, called for the painting's removal from the museum, arguing that it tarnished both the image of their revolutionary leader and the cultural center itself. The opposing group shouted homophobic chants at the supporters. Later, the protest escalated into a full-scale brawl involving physical violence.[6] President Andrés Manuel López Obrador condemned the incident.[1]

Jorge Zapata, Emiliano Zapata's grandson, said that his family would take legal action against Cháirez and the INBAL, as they considered that the artwork diminished the image of Emiliano.[3] The authorities reached an agreement with Zapata's family to install an informational disclaimer plaque next to the painting:

"For some contemporary artists, Zapata is not only a symbol of resistance but also a reference point from which to challenge hegemonic masculinities. In this oil painting, Fabián Cháirez redefines an icon of Mexican machismo to highlight sexual diversity, particularly homosexual, brown-skinned, effeminate bodies from the working class that do not fit within the norm. Cháirez's La Revolución links Zapata's legacy with the struggles of the LGTB+ community, reclaiming femininity as a revolutionary attitude amid a homophobic and misogynistic society in the 21st century. Descendants of Emiliano Zapata expressed their disagreement with this image, considering the representation of Zapata inappropriate. Through dialogue between the authorities of the Secretariat of Culture and INBAL, the Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes will retain the artwork, based on the principle of protecting the right to artistic and creative freedom".[b]

Reception

Citlaly Aguilar Campos, in her academic research paper "Rethinking National Heroes through Discourses Outside the Historical Tradition: Emiliano Zapata Undressed", presented for the National Council for the Teaching and Research of Communication Sciences (CONEICC), explores how the figure of the national hero can be reinterpreted through alternative perspectives that challenge traditional narratives, official discourses, and dominant cultural values. She discusses La Revolución as a bold and liberating work, drawing comparisons to caricature. Aguilar Campos reflects on Jorge Zapata’s interpretation of the painting—he believed it portrayed his grandfather as gay—even though the artwork includes no text or direct reference to the LGBTQ community. She argues that this response echoes what American philosopher Charles Sanders Peirce described: that signs do not function in isolation but generate meaning through a network of interpretants. In other words, a semiotic articulation emerges through this network—what Peirce terms semiosis, the infinite dialogue between signs that shifts according to the spatiotemporal context and the interpreter.[8]

In their 2021 article, "The Disruptive Imaginaries of the Queer Body: An Analysis of Dissident Masculinity in 21st-Century Mexican Illustration", published in the Revista Interdisciplinaria de Estudios de Género of El Colegio de México, Nivardo Trejo Olvera and Silvia Ruiz Tresgallo present an anthology of Mexico-based artists who explore alternative representations of masculinity from a dissident perspective. Through a critical lens, the authors examine how traditional portrayals of masculinity have been constructed and reinforced by national culture.[7]

Renato González Mello argues that the artwork relies on the concept of decorum in a sarcastic way, embellishing a historical figure to highlight the absurdity of traditional ideals.[2] Regarding the controversy, art critic Avelina Lésper said, "You know what I find controversial? That they hung such a bad painting".[6]

The Spanish journalist Tatxo Benet bought the painting following its controversy and displayed it at the Museu de l'Art Prohibit (Museum of Forbidden Art), in Barcelona, Spain.[9][10][11]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ lit. transl. The Revolution[1]
  2. ^ Original text: "Para algunos artistas contemporáneos, Zapata no sólo es símbolo de resistencia sino también un referente desde el cual cuestionar las masculinidades hegemónicas. En este óleo, Fabián Cháirez, resignifica un icono del machismo mexicano para visibilizar la diversidad sexual, particularmente cuerpos homosexuales, morenos, afeminados y de clase popular que no encajan dentro de la norma. La Revolución de Cháirez vincula el legado zapatista con las luchas de la población LGTB+, reivindicando la feminidad como una actitud revolucionaria en medio de una sociedad homofóbica y misógina en pleno siglo XXI. Descendientes de Emiliano Zapata expresaron su desacuerdo con esta imagen, por considerar inadecuada la representación de Zapata. Mediante el diálogo entre autoridades de la Secretaría de Cultura y el INBAL, el Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes mantendrá la obra, basándose en el principio de la protección al derecho de libertad artística y creativa".[7]

References

  1. ^ a b Murray, Christine (11 December 2019). "Mexico's president condemns LGBT+ hate crimes after painting row". Reuters. Mexico City. Archived from the original on 28 March 2023. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
  2. ^ a b c d González Mello, Renato (21 May 2020). "Lo que se ve no se juzga" [What one sees doesn't have to be questioned about]. Nexos (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 June 2025.
  3. ^ a b "¿Qué pasa con 'La Revolución'? La pintura que incomoda a la familia de Emiliano Zapata" [What is happening with 'La Revolución'? The painting that sparked controversy among Emiliano Zapata's descendants]. Animal Político. 19 December 2019. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
  4. ^ "Zapata feminizado decora bar gay Marrakech en CdMx" [Feminized Zapata decorates gay bar Marrakech in Mexico City]. Milenio. Mexico City. 11 December 2019. Archived from the original on 18 November 2024. Retrieved 2 June 2025.
  5. ^ Díaz, Antonio (7 December 2019). "Zapata feminizado crea polémica homófoba" [Feminized portrayal of Zapata sparks homophobic controversy]. El Universal (in Spanish). Retrieved 6 November 2023.
  6. ^ a b c Izquierdo, Ignacio (18 February 2023). "Cuando una pintura de Zapata provocó golpes en Bellas Artes" [When a painting of Zapata sparked violence at Bellas Artes]. Infobae (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 June 2025.
  7. ^ a b Trejo Olvera, Luis Nivardo; Ruiz Tresgallo, Silvia (26 July 2021). "Los imaginarios disruptivos del cuerpo queer: un análisis de la masculinidad disidente en la ilustración mexicana del siglo XXI" [Disruptive imaginaries of the queer body: An analysis of dissident masculinity in 21st-Century Mexican illustration]. Revista Interdisciplinaria de Estudios de Género de el Colegio de México (in Spanish). 7: 1–33. doi:10.24201/reg.v7i1.616. ISSN 2395-9185. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
  8. ^ Aguilar Campos, Citlaly (24 December 2021). "Repensar los héroes nacionales a través de discursos fuera de la tradición histórica: Emiliano Zapata al desnudo" [Rethinking National Heroes through Discourses Outside the Historical Tradition: Emiliano Zapata Undressed]. Anuario de Investigación CONEICC. I (XXVIII): 66–73. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
  9. ^ "Compran 'La Revolución', la pintura de Zapata feminizado que causó polémica" ['La Revolución', the feminized Zapata painting that sparked controversy, is purchased]. Milenio (in Spanish). Barcelona. 15 January 2020. Archived from the original on 18 May 2024. Retrieved 4 June 2024.
  10. ^ Sesé, Teresa (24 October 2023). "Barcelona abre el primer museo del mundo dedicado al 'arte prohibido'" [Barcelona opens the world’s first museum dedicated to 'forbidden art']. La Vanguardia. Barcelona. Retrieved 4 June 2025.
  11. ^ Nikolić, Dragan (February 2025). "Art Too Dangerous to Be Seen". Diplomacy & Commerce. No. 102. pp. 42–43. ISSN 2466-3808.
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