P.O.V. is premiering "The Last Conquistador" tonight. It's a really interesting documentary by John J. Valadez and Cristina Ibarra about arts activism and participatory democracy. I saw it at the Full Frame Doc Fest in Durham and got a lot out of it. Here's P.O.V.'s description:

"Renowned sculptor John Houser has a dream: to build the world’s tallest bronze equestrian statue for the city of El Paso, Texas. He envisions a stunning monument to the Spanish conquistador Juan de Oñate that will pay tribute to the contributions Hispanic people made to building the American West. But as the project nears completion troubles arise. Native Americans are outraged — they remember Oñate as the man who brought genocide to their land. As El Paso divides along lines of race and class, the artist must face the moral implications of his work. A co-production of Independent Television Service (ITVS), Latino Public Broadcasting, Native American Public Telecommunications and KERA Dallas/Fort Worth."

Check the Web site for listings. Also: The Web site has some interesting interactive features about public monuments.

The Last Conquistador

   

Comments

Post a comment

Thanks for signing in, . Now you can comment. (sign out)

(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)

URL:
Remember me? YesNo

Comments: