Regina José Galindo (Guatemala City, 1974) is an artist and poet who uses her own body to expose the violence imposed by power structures in contemporary societies. Born during the Guatemalan Civil War (1954–96), a conflict that decimated and caused the disappearance of thousands of Guatemalans, the artist’s work is deeply shaped by the political and ethical concerns stemming from this historical context. A pioneer of performance art in Latin America, her work pushes the physical limits of her own body and the audience to denounce human rights abuses and gender inequality.

In the video Deportada (Todo lo que perdí) [Everything I Lost] (2024), Galindo stands motionless amidst the personal belongings of Cristina Cazales Pacheco, a Mexican woman deported from New York back to her home country. Dressed in multiple layers of clothing that belonged to Cristina, the artist has these pieces gradually removed from her body by the public—a process that highlights the erasure of her existence by a society that normalizes the consequences of forced displacement, or even participates in this physical and symbolic dispossession. On a second channel, Cristina narrates her story and the anguish caused by the imposition of a border between her, her family, and her desires. Galindo has addressed Latin American immigration to the United States in previous works, and in this recent piece, she highlights the persistence and urgency of the violence that permeates the issue, reinforcing the importance of ensuring a face, a voice, and a presence for its victims.

‍Video Room: Regina José Galindo is curated by Bruna Fernanda, curatorial assistant, MASP.

The exhibition is part of the year dedicated to Latin American Histories, which also includes solo exhibitions by Carolina Caycedo, Claudia Alarcón & Silät, Colectivo Acciones de Arte, Damián Ortega, Jesús Soto, La Chola Poblete, Manuel Herreros de Lemos and Mateo Manaure Arilla, Pablo Delano, Rosa Elena Curruchich, Sandra Gamarra Heshiki, Santiago Yahuarcani, and Sol Calero, as well as the group exhibition Latin American Histories, and Video Room exhibitions by Clara Ianni, Claudia Martínez Garay, Edgar Calel, and Oscar Muñoz.

The walls of the Video Room: Regina José Galindo exhibition were painted with the colors Disco de Vinil Acrílico Fosco Decora Matte, Branco Neve Fosco Decora Matte, and Cinza Tecnológico Fosco Decora Matte by Tintas Coral, an AkzoNobel brand.