Art for a dollar: A downtown store intervention
Abstract
As the Santa Fe International Bridge (a port of entry to the U.S. from Mexico) ends and becomes El Paso Street, it is home to a large number of small businesses, all of which are indispensable to the local economy. In these stores, shoppers can find a wide variety of products, from clothing to electronics and everything and anything in between. All of it is for sale at the lowest of prices. Ironically, most of the products are imported from Asia or the Middle East, in many cases illegally. Each downtown store is unique and idiosyncratic when compared to mainstream retail stores. Each has its own peculiar, sometimes chaotic yet beautiful, layout. Its beauty relies on the constantly changing inventories and diversity of products. Art for a Dollar: a downtown store intervention is different from prior interventions but consistent in concept and intention. Based on my experiences as artist and employee of an art gallery, the project compares "La Buena Vida" a store located downtown El Paso at 801 El Paso Street, to an art gallery by pointing out similarities in their functioning structures. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)
Subject Area
Art history|Cultural anthropology
Recommended Citation
Castro, Miguel Angel, "Art for a dollar: A downtown store intervention" (2006). ETD Collection for University of Texas, El Paso. AAI1435357.
https://scholarworks.utep.edu/dissertations/AAI1435357