À La Mode

Asco, Gronk, Harry Gamboa, Jr., Patssi Valdez, Willie F.  Herrón III, À La Mode, 1976, printed 2010, chromogenic print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2013.44.2, © 1976, Harry Gamboa, Jr.
Asco, Harry Gamboa, Jr., Gronk, Willie F. Herrón III, Patssi Valdez, À La Mode, 1976, printed 2010, chromogenic print, image: 12 3418 34 in. (32.447.6 cm) sheet: 1620 in. (40.650.8 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2013.44.2, © 1976, Harry Gamboa, Jr.

Artwork Details

Title
À La Mode
Photographer
Date
1976, printed 2010
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
image: 12 3418 34 in. (32.447.6 cm) sheet: 1620 in. (40.650.8 cm)
Copyright
© 1976, Harry Gamboa, Jr.
Credit Line
Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment
Mediums Description
chromogenic print
Classifications
Object Number
2013.44.2

Artwork Description

The now-defunct conceptual art group Asco coined the phrase “No Movie” to refer to their fabricated film stills of nonexistent films. One such production, À la Mode, features a glamorous Patssi Valdez sandwiched between two men (Gronk and Harry Gamboa) as if to suggest a love-triangle movie plot. Asco circulated this image to news outlets where it was published as evidence of a real film. Asco’s media interventions, which placed Chicanos in control of their own public images, reveal the hunger for a broader range of Latino representations.

Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art, 2013

Description in Spanish

El grupo de arte conceptual ya desaparecido Asco acuñó la frase No Movie” para referirse a sus fotogramas ficticios de películas inexistentes. Una de esas producciones, À la Mode, presenta a una glamorosa Pattsi Valdez rodeada por dos hombres (Gronk y Harry Gamboa) como sugiriendo una trama de película basada en un triángulo amoroso. Asco hizo circular esta imagen entre algunas agencias de noticias, donde fue publicada como si fuera evidencia de un filme real. Las intervenciones de Asco en los medios de comunicación, que dieron control a los chicanos sobre su propia imagen pública, revelan la avidez de los latinos por lograr una gama más amplia de representación.

Nuestra América: la presencia latina en el arte estadounidense, 2013

Works by this artist (8 items)

Beatrice S. Levy, The Beach, n.d., color aquatint, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chicago Society of Etchers, 1935.13.188
The Beach
Daten.d.
color aquatint
Not on view
Beatrice S. Levy, The Derelict, 1914, color aquatint on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chicago Society of Etchers, 1935.13.187
The Derelict
Date1914
color aquatint on paper
Not on view
Beatrice S. Levy, In Orchestra Hall, n.d., drypoint, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chicago Society of Etchers, 1935.13.189
In Orchestra Hall
Daten.d.
drypoint
Not on view
Beatrice S. Levy, Rain in the Hills, 1935, etching on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chicago Society of Etchers, 1935.13.605
Rain in the Hills
Date1935
etching on paper
Not on view

Exhibitions

Media - 2011.12 - SAAM-2011.12_1 - 77591
Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art
October 25, 2013March 2, 2014
Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art presents the rich and varied contributions of Latino artists in the United States since the mid-twentieth century, when the concept of a collective Latino identity began to emerge.

More Artworks from the Collection

Salvatore Mancini, Narragansett Electric, 2000, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Joseph A. Chazan, M.D., 2002.80.8
Narragansett Electric
Date2000
gelatin silver print
Not on view
Salvatore Mancini, Remains of Lock, Millville, 2000, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Joseph A. Chazan, M.D., 2002.80.6
Remains of Lock, Millville
Date2000
gelatin silver print
Not on view
Keisha Scarville, Chair, 2001, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Perkins Center for the Arts, 2002.17, © 2001, Keisha Scarville
Chair
Date2001
gelatin silver print
Not on view
Salvatore Mancini, Eel Fisherman, 2000, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Joseph A. Chazan, M.D., 2002.80.2
Eel Fisherman
Date2000
gelatin silver print
Not on view