s3e55 Mexican cartels and conceptual rigor with artist Miguel A. Aragón

Platemark: prints and the printmaking ecosystem

In s3e55, Platemark host Ann Shafer speaks with Miguel A. Aragón, artist and professor at the City University of New York, Staten Island. They talk about CNC routers, drills as woodcutting tools, growing up in Juarez, Mexico, and that city’s war on drugs as a subject in his art. He weaves a tight conceptual circle in prints that explore violence, death, perception, and memory in surprisingly subtle works.

Miguel A. Aragón (Mexican, born 1978). Espectadores (Spectators), from the series Meoria Fracturada, 2013. Burnt residue embossment. 11 x 15 in. Courtesy of the artist.

Miguel A. Aragón (Mexican, born 1978). Retrato 18, negro (Portrait 18, black), 2008. Hand-drilled paper with drywall dust. 96 x 48 in. Courtesy of the Artist.

Miguel A. Aragón (Mexican, born 1978). Retrato 18, negro (Portrait 18, white), 2008. Hand-drilled paper. Each: 96 x 48 in. Courtesy of the Artist.

Miguel A. Aragón (Mexican, born 1978). Retrato 06, panel de yeso (Portrait 06, drywall). Hand-drilled drywall. 96 x 48 in. Courtesy of the Artist.

Miguel A. Aragón drilling into drywall for the Retrato series.

Miguel A. Aragón (Mexican, born 1978). Retrato 06, panel de yeso (Portrait 06, drywall). Hand-drilled drywall. 96 x 48 in. Courtesy of the artist. Miguel A. Aragón (Mexican, born 1978). Aplacado (el Veladero) [Appeased (el Veladero)], 2016. Woodcut. Image: 48 x 36 in.; sheet: 51 ½ x 38 ½ in. Published by Flatbed Press, Austin.

Miguel A. Aragón working at Kala Art Institute in Berkeley, CA.

Miguel A. Aragón working at Scuola Internazionale di Grafica di Venezia in Venice, Italy.

Miguel A. Aragón working at Zygote Press in Cleveland, OH.

Miguel A. Aragón working with Wuon Gean Ho at East London Printmakers.

Studio view of the Edinburgh Printmakers in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Studio view of the Glasgow Print Studio in Glasgow, Scotland

Studio view of the Grafikwerkstatt Dresden in Dresden, Germany.

Michael Barnes working at the Steindruck München Lithografie-Werkstatt in Munich, Germany.

Miguel A. Aragón’s mother’s doilies at the Morgan Conservatory in Cleveland, OH.

Miguel A. Aragón. 26.06.2009, 20:07:31. Color lithograph. Sheet: 27.5 x 22 in. Published by Flatbed Press, Austin.

Miguel A. Aragón. Index: 2170. Color lithograph. Sheet: 27 1/2 x 22 in. Published by Flatbed Press, Austin.

Installation shot of Miguel Aragón: Holding it all Gently. February 13–March 14, 2024. College of Staten Island, City University of New York, Staten Island.

Installation shot of Miguel Aragón: Holding it all Gently. February 13–March 14, 2024. College of Staten Island, City University of New York, Staten Island.

Installation shot of Miguel Aragón: Holding it all Gently. February 13–March 14, 2024. College of Staten Island, City University of New York, Staten Island.