Between Two Sides of the Atlantic: Galician Visual Artists in New York

Abstract

The growing field of Galician cultural studies has been moving rapidly out of the periphery of academic scholarship. The latest developments in this field have been marked by the effects of globalization and the expansion of its scope to include areas previously considered as a ‘periphery’ of cultural studies, such as visual arts. Influenced by these tendencies, this paper focuses on two contemporary Galician visual artists, both internationally acclaimed, sculptor Francisco Leiro and painter Antonio Murado. They are both prominent Galician artists whose sources of creative power are linked to their Galician roots. Currently they are both based in New York, one of the most important centres of contemporary art in the global stage. This essay discusses Leiro and Murado’s oeuvre as an example of the cross-cultural connections between the two sides of the Atlantic.