Code-X: Contemporary Chicanx Codices
curated by Rafael Fajardo
January 9 - February 23 2025
Vicki Myhren Gallery
2121 E. Asbury Ave.
Denver, CO 80210
press release
The Vicki Myhren Gallery is proud to present Code-X: Contemporary Chicanx Codices, curated by DU’s own Rafael Fajardo, Professor of Emergent Digital Practices. This exhibition brings together the artworks of more than a dozen Chicanx artists who reimagine the long tradition of the codex as a dynamic space for Chicanx storytelling. Ranging from painting and prints to comic books, zines, and video games, these artworks bridge the analog and digital. The artists mix the ancient, colonial, and modern to explore the complexities of contemporary life, including migration, Mestizaje, and cultural survival. Featuring many interactive artworks, this exhibition invites all visitors to play and engage with these innovative and thoughtful reworkings of the codex.
One of the highlights of this remarkable exhibition is Leo Sailas' Barrio Bros., a platform game "set in an environment that draws heavily from Chicano and Mexican American heritage. Players navigate through levels teeming with various encounters and challenges. As Barrio, (the protagonist) players encounter imaginative enemies like hard taco monsters, (Crunchers WIP) navigating through platforms that blend traditional motifs we are all familiar with and fictional elements." (Sailas)
You can play Barrio Bros here.