“Photographic” is a fun little show that draws attention to both the life and works of Mexican photographer Graciela Iturbide, long known for her sensitive and eye-catching photography about Mexico's indigenous cultures and people. Its unique aspect lies in how Iturbide’s life and work are presented. Instead of the common way of displaying an artist’s oeuvre in chronological order or according to phases, Iturbide is presented through the eyes of self-taught illustrator Zeke Peña and award-winning prose writer Isabel Quintero, who helped to create a graphic novel about Iturbide that’s fully displayed in the gallery. Parts of the novel are glued on the gallery’s front desk like advertising pillars. Other illustrations rest on little shelves attached to the wall or painted directly on the wall. The exhibit includes many of Iturbide’s renowned black-and-white photographs, including the stunning "Mujer ángel, Desierto de Sonora” (1979), as well as her color photographs from Frida Kahlo’s La Casa Azul. If you want to start Pacific Standard Time LA/LA on a lighter note, and want to see how photography, text, and illustration can be happily joined together, you need to check this out.
