Gómez-Peña’s Mex Files: Classified Episode, Part 1

Portrait of Guillermo Gómez-Peña — Guillermo Gómez-Peña, courtesy of the artist.

A man sits upright at a table wearing a black hat, sunglasses, and an open black jacket with yellow shoulder pads exposing his chest with tattoos. A stack of white paper sits on the table along with a vase of flowers, an intricate ash tray with skulls, candles, and a plastic alien head labelled with the text “Alien Pops.” The room is red behind the seated figure, with artworks, photographs and carved items decorating the walls. A prominent neon sign that reads "La Nostalgia BAR” sits above the seated person.

The series Gómez-Peña’s Mex Files: Audio Art and Strange Poetry from the US/Mexico Border is a multi-lingual live radio and archived audio program by performance artist, writer, activist, and MacArthur fellow Guillermo Gómez-Peña addressing the multiple pandemics of racism, sexism, militarism, and colonialism.

During confinement, Gómez Peña has been revisiting his imaginary radio station & his life experiences via past raw recordings that never saw the light of day. Classified Episode 1 shows how two decades can pass and still certain themes persist. This recording – spanning over 20 years of work – is more pertinent than ever.

Produced by Charly García and Stephanie Manriquez

Presented in partnership between Jane Addams Hull-House Museum, Public Media institute, and the University of Chicago’s Smart Museum of Art. The series is an initiative of Toward Common Cause: Art, Social Change, and the MacArthur Fellows Program at 40.

Jane Addams Hull-House Museum

Gómez-Peña’s Mex Files: Audio Art and Strange Poetry from the US/Mexico Border

Smart Museum of Art

Public Media Institute

Guillermo Gómez-Peña