The Mexican border city of Tijuana often garners more attention for its poverty and migration politics than its thriving artist communitiy. 'Tijuana Organic: Women's Border Realities,' an exhibition at London's Space Gallery, sheds new light on things in its presentation of the work of ten local female artists. Included in the show is photography, painting, installation, and new media meant to reveal women's roles in the area. Notions of barriers and access are among the most predominant themes, here, whether manifesting as fleshy boundaries or topographic markings. But the topics touched upon also signify on other levels. Tania Candiani satirizes the technologies of war in turning household objects into weapons, and media collective Bulbo's video and radio transmissions document the challenges faced by female machinists. The subtext of the exhibit, which was curated by Maria Montserrat Sanchez and first organized by Manchester's Cornerhouse, is the use of artistic media to reevaluate mainstream media portrayals of Tijuana women. The show's 'organic' contextualization is one in which collective actions might germinate a new image. - Marisa Olson
