Jorge Rodriguez-Gerada

Jorge Rodriguez-Gerada is a Cuban-American contemporary artist. He was born in Cuba and grew up in the United States. He became a founding member of the culture jamming movement in New York City in the early 1990s, first with the group Artfux and later with the group Cicada Corps of Artists. Rodriguez-Gerada was first brought to international attention with the book "No Logo" by Naomi Klein. International attention has been given to the Identity interventions which he has been creating since 2002.

Culture Jamming

"In the chapter dedicated to 'culture jamming' -a term coined by the band Negativland- she reviews some of the major exponents of these ways of acting. Among them, the Canadian journalist pinpoints the work carried out for years by the North American artist of Cuban origin Jorge Rodriguez Gerada, entailing direct interventions on billboards." [Reguera, Galder. "Creative Resistance." Lapiz" May 2004: 54.]

"Rodriguez de Gerada is widely recognized as one of the most skilled and creative founders of culture jamming, the practice of parodying advertisements and hijacking billboards in order to drastically alter their messages." [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BDW/is_28_41/ai_64258853 Culture Jamming: Ads Under attack, Brandweek]

The Identity Series

His most recent artistic manifestation is the Identity Series which he began in Spain in 2002. Gigantic charcoal portraits of anonymous people scale the walls of buildings in different cities. These drawings question the controls imposed on public space, the role models that represent us and the type of events that are guarded by the collective memory. The blending of the charcoal and the wall surface with the wind, rain or the sudden destruction of the wall is ultimately the most important part of the process. The intent is to have identity, place and memory become one.

“My idea is to show that we should all be seen with dignity. I believe that our identity should come from within not from the brands that we wear. We should question who chooses our cultural icons and role models, our values and aesthetics. We are living in a time were corporate manipulation has become very refined and effective. “Terrorist” manipulation has at its base the premise of the individual being considered dispensable in order to change the thinking of the larger group. By giving importance to one anonymous life I want to give importance to empathy.”The charcoal medium, in this case is chosen specifically as a metaphor for the ephemerality and fragility of identity. After days of labor the charcoal fades with the weather, slowly returning the site to its original state. The Icon fades in the elements leaving only a memory.

References

Reguera, Galder. "Creative Resistance." Lapiz" May 2004: 54

[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BDW/is_28_41/ai_64258853 Culture Jamming: Ads Under attack, Brandweek]

Further reading

John Santerineross (Artfux)

"Creative Resistance." Lapiz Magazine May 2004

Video