Dismantling the Nation: Contemporary Art in Chile

The first volume to theorize and historicize contemporary artistic practices from Chile in the English language, Dismantling the Nation begins from a position of radical criticism against the nation-state of Chile and its capitalist, heteronormative, and extractivist rule. At a truly pivotal moment in the country’s history, when it is redefining what it wants to be, the works here propose a way of forging a feminist and decolonial future for Chile. The authors attend to practices from distinct locations in Chile, reconceptualizing geographical borders from a transnational and transdisciplinary perspective while engaging with ecocriticism and Indigenous epistemologies. This is an essential volume for anyone looking to understand the current social, political, and artistic movements in Chile.

With contributions from Carolina Arévalo Karl, Francisca Benitez, Ariel Bustamante, Manuel Carrión Lira, Fernanda Carvajal, Paula (Paly) Carvajal Borquez, Carolina Castro Jorquera, Antonio Catrileo Araya, Matías Celedón, colectiva somoslacélula, Colectivo Últimaesperanza, Carl Fischer, Mariairis Flores Leiva, Gregorio Fontaine Correa, Marcelo Garzo Montalvo, Astrid González, Milena Grass Kleiner, Sophie Halart, Bernardita Llanos M., Nicole L’Huillier, Carla Macchiavello Cornejo, Camila Marambio, María Luisa Murillo, José Pérez de Arce, Florencia San Martín, Demian Schopf, Paula Solimano, Catherine Spencer, Ignacio Szmulewicz, Verónica Tello, Cristian Vargas Paillahueque, Cecilia Vicuña, and Sebastián Vidal.

“Dismantling the Nation offers radical new visions toward Chilean art that take into account the structures of local and global power that govern the country while also recognizing art and culture as potentially disruptive agents within those structures. The time is right for a book like this one. Socially engaged artists are responding with offerings of healing and hope before our increasingly troubled world and Chile is playing a key role in that project. This book gives us a glimpse into these exciting arts movements.”
—Guisela Latorre, Ohio State University

Florencia San Martín is assistant professor of art history at Lehigh University. She is a coauthor of The Routledge Companion to Decolonizing Art History (2023) and is currently writing a monograph on Chilean artist Alfredo Jaar.

Carla Macchiavello Cornejo is associate professor of art history at The Borough of Manhattan Community College. She is coeditor of the book Turba Tol Hol Hol (2023) and has a forthcoming book on Chilean art during the dictatorship (Ediciones Metales Pesados).

Paula Solimano is a curator and art historian whose work focuses on feminist and queer practices in Latin America. She publishes on the art market and has curated shows in New York, Santiago, and Madrid.

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