Diego Cortez / Jimmy DeSana
My Latin Heritage / El Cansearch Presidente
1977

About the Item

A photographic mixed media piece created collaboratively by Jimmy DeSana and Diego Cortez. Jimmy DeSana (1949-1990), a key figure in the New York downtown scene of the 1970s and 80s, created a body of photography that evinces a singular style typified by concealed figures, saturated colors, and surreal mise-en-scène, with subject matter that index the artist’s fascination with American suburbia and queer fetish subculture in equal measure. His staged images of the human body and portraits of cultural icons such as Yoko Obo, David Byrne, and Debbie Harry, capture the avant-garde spirit of a defining moment in the City’s history. Diego Cortez (1946-2021) was an American filmmaker and art curator closely associated with the no wave period in New York City. He was co-founder of the Mudd Club and curator of the watershed 1981 New York/New Wave show at PS1, cited as one of the most consequential art exhibitions of the 20th century and credited with bringing then aspiring artist Jean-Michel Basquiat to fame. A linchpin of 1980s downtown New York, Cortez championed the radical artistic practices of the time which merged different media, from painting, collage, graffiti, performance, and music.

Creator:

Diego Cortez / Jimmy DeSana

Creation Year:

1977

Dimensions:

Height: 48 in (121.92 cm)Width: 20 in (50.8 cm)

More Editions & Sizes:

48" x 20", Edition of 3Price: $7,500

Medium:

Mixed Media

Period:

1970-1979