In-betweeners remain UN/Divided

International artists came together at Southwestern College for their mutual love of art.

Instructor Griselda Rosas coordinated the gallery UN/Divided to show SWC the beauty of the border by presenting graffiti artists Israel “Shente” Elizondo, Nestor “Spel Uno” Mondragon and Guillermo Echeveste, who bring border culture to life.

“We emphasize the space between the borders, the two nations in order to communicate not divide us,” Elizondo said. “We are not divided by an invisible line.”

The three artists have traveled all over the world, including places like Colombia, Cuba and Israel.

In 2018, President Trump’s mantra: “Build the Wall” became a controversial conversation for those between the borders. The outcome of Trump’s border promises led to hatred and political division between both countries.

Elizondo and Mondragon displayed “In-Betweener – Entre Lineas,” a 30 foot long piece created with graphite, aerosol, watercolor and solid paint markers. On the left side, the U.S. flag bleeds into the border wall, and on the right, a prickly pear cactus represents the Mexican flag. Placed in the middle is the recurring word “Free.”

“Eres free?” (you are free?) comes into question leading towards the Mexican side. A drawing of gray sketched faces labeled “I THE INBETWEENER!”

They remain conflicted and stare deeply towards the U.S. flag. It is a term for those in between countries, who have to look at both sides and either pick one or stand on the sidelines conflicted. They provide a sincere voice as they know the facts from either side.

“I feel connected as my family is in the States and the rest is in Mexico,” Elizondo said. “I go back and forth. That’s why I never saw it as a division, it is not something that it is dividing us.”

Elizondo was part of Tijuana’s first display of graffiti art. At the age of eight, he began breakdancing with his older brother, which connected him to the culture of graffiti.

“Art was always present at the house and I thought to myself where do I fit in the grand square of the arts,” he said.

Elizondo’s crew HEM, Hecho en Mexico (Made in Mexico), was created in the late 80s in Tijuana and San Diego, a crew of in-betweeners that would display New York Urban style graffiti. Spel Uno is a recent member of HEM.

The crew struggled to show the true art of graffiti due to the comparison of illegal tagging.

“There is a difference between a criminal and an artist,” Elizondo said. “Some are not being artists but being destructive. What is legal and what is illegal. Even though you are an artist they think of you as a criminal.”

Elizondo said graffiti provided him a great voice. He had no graffiti tutors and developed his skills in the street. Lacking a professor did not stop him from learning how to graffiti. He was inspired by dance movies and soon began stealing his own Corona paint to practice, as other graffiti artist would do back in the day. Corona was a mainstream Mexican paint brand no longer sold.

Guillermo Echeveste’s artwork was a white obelisk sculpture made of plaster of Paris, placed in the middle of the gallery.

Echeveste’s intention was to reverse the symbol of the 19th Century public art monument that marks the border between Mexico and the United States into a playful cultural practice by playing with typography. He gave the original obelisk a makeover by questioning the “boundary of human intelligence.”

These international artists are “In-Betweeners.” They have seen both sides of the border and do not feel divided. They continue to create art to enhance the beauty of this division.

“When we travel I don’t feel divided,” Elizondo said. “There is no no connection. The necessity they have, you have. I think of divided as a mental line. So cliché.”