Mexico City Art Galleries Walking Tour
For those of you who are like me, gay, and predisposed to the promises of art, even if we may not be educated formally in the discipline, the world of art seems to offer a promise to outsiders like me and it’s hard for me to turn my back on it, even if it is turning its back on me. – Tracey Parker
Mexico City’s Art Gallery Scene generates lots of buzz. Big name publications write about it frequently. But as a local expat who has lived here for 5 years, I often read the articles and find them lacking. Most times I’m disappointed to read them and find that they really don’t know what they are talking about.
For example: All of the articles mention the historical colonial neighborhood of San Miguel Chapultepec. They all mention the same 5 or 6 galleries, along with some stunning photography of the art that is occasionally on display to the public there.
In researching this article I made several trips to these galleries and over and over again I found that they were either
- Closed because they were setting up a new show
- Open, but they had already taken down a show that was not scheduled to be taken down until weeks or even 1 month later
- Open, but you have to ring a doorbell only to be let in by a well dressed person who really does not want to be opening the door. They let me in and gave no description of what I was looking at, and to be honest I walked around an empty gallery while the person stared at their cellphone and waited for me to leave.
If San Miguel Chapultepec were only galleries, Id recommend skipping it for all of the reasons above. However as a gay traveler, I really think that taking a walk around a neighborhood that is hosting a burgeoning art scene is a really seductive idea. Even if the scene isn’t mature enough to put on a welcoming face to new and curious fans, there is still something inside me that wants to see this and be a part of it.
For those of you who are like me, gay, and predisposed to the promises of art, even if we may not be educated formally in the discipline, the world of art seems to offer a promise to outsiders like me and it’s hard for me to turn my back on it, even if it is turning its back toward me.
4 Plan B Activities that could pass for plan A if you happen to be rejected by all the galleries in Mexico City’s San Miguel Chapultepec
The following is my recommendation of some reliable attractions that are guaranteed to impress gay travelers. Together, along with maybe a gallery or two, this will make a great Monday afternoon in Mexico City.
I specify Monday because I don’t think San Miguel de Chapultepec or The Mexico City Art Scene is worthy of time on any other day of the week. There is just too much to do and too much to see.
Architecture – Casa Gilardi
ADVANCED RESERVATIONS ARE NECESSARY. Make your reservations here (This is a form that is sometimes glitchy. If you have problems, email a request for a tour to casagilardi@gmail.com
ENGLISH IS SPOKEN 🙂
After being rejected by several galleries in the neighborhood, I stumbled upon Casa Gilardi. This house is one of the many homes designed by famous Mexican Architect Luis Barragán. Guided Tours are offered but you must make an appointment the day before.
While not as well known as the Casa de Louis Barragán in Constituyentes, requests for reservations here are always honored and it is somewhat of a ‘hidden gem’ in Mexico City. The English tour will introduce you to the work of this famous Mexican Architect as well as a taste of what homes in Mexico City are like.
Honestly, if you completely strike out on the galleries, this tour will make the trip worth it.
Art you can depend on – Galeria RGR
This was the only Gallery that had somebody at the door who was happy to see me. He greeted me, explained the exhibition to me, and chatted with me, in English, about the art scene in Mexico.
Open the giant door with confidence, this gallery will treat you with courtesy.
Upscale Mexican Lunch – Madereros
Beautiful restaurant on the inside and outside. Located inside of a restored Spanish mansion, decorated by Ricardo Casas.
I passed this restaurant three times a week back when I was taking ballet classes at a nearby dance studio. I was always struck by the delicious foods that I saw being served and enjoyed on their outside patio.
Once I finally got a chance to try the food, I was very impressed.
They focus on grilled meats but don’t worry, this is not an Argentinian Steakhouse (a popular concept in Mexico that’s kind of been overdone in the US already in my opinion).
The name, Madereros, is named after the extinct profession of bringing logs into Mexico City. The logs came in on Avenue Constituyentes, a famous highway located nearby.
Less Expensive Food Options – Deli Lou
While I find the food selection at most Mexican Cafe’s to be horrendous, Deli Lou is a Deli first and a cafe seccond.
Their sub style sandwiches are trendy and delicious. I came here regularly while attending a ballet class at nearby dance studio and I was never disappointed.
This type of consistency is rare in Mexico.
They won’t really help you pick anything unless you as them, and it’s not guaranteed that they’ll speak English.
Everything on the menu you can get as either a salad or a sandwich. They will ask you if you want spicy salsa on your sandwich and I suggest you say yes. It’s not that spicy.
You can enjoy your sandwich sitting on a bench outside the restaurant or carry it around with you.
Really Really Cheap Food Options
If eating on a budget is your thing, you can’t get any cheaper than Mexican Street Food.
This particular dish is called Tacos Dorados with Salsa Verde, and I ordered it ‘preperado,’ which means that it comes with lettuce, crema, and cheese on top.
This is one of the many food options on Calle Benjamin Hill. This street is popular with the lunch crowd and they sell many Mexican Food options other than tacos. It is a good place to see how Mexican’s eat casually.
There are two health clinics and a large Urban University Campus on this street, so there is a big demand for cheap lunch foods and this street delivers.
To get here you’ll have to leave the Neighborhood of San Miguel Chapultepec and head towards La Condesa. So I recommend you go here either before or after you see the other places on this tour.
Clinica Especializada Condesa – Bearing Witness to an Impressive But Sadly Inadequate Response to an HIV Epidemic that Disproportionately Affects Thriving Gay Communities in Countries like Mexico
Zen Buddhism includes a practice of bearing witness. To bear witness is to embrace both the joy and suffering that we encounter. Rather than simply observing the situation, we become the situation.
The Clinica Especializada Condesa is a public health clinic operated by Mexico City which focuses on providing free access to HIV medication for people living with HIV. Every day thousands of gay men, among others, line up at this clinic to receive treatment for a virus that has not yet been cured. Neither does a vaccine exist for HIV.
While sexual liberation has been a big part of my experience in Mexico City, I wouldn’t be telling the entire story if I excluded talking about HIV, which has accompanied many movements of sexual liberation that have occurred in the world.
HIV has been in the background of most of my sexual life as a gay man. In Mexico it moved to the foreground. My first friend who I met in Mexico died of untreated HIV 9 months after we met. He never told me about his HIV status and perhaps he did not know himself.
While this clinic would have provided him, for free, with medication that would has saved his life, there is yet to exist an infrastructure in Mexico to educate and empower gay men to get tested, use preventative measures like condoms or PrEP, or navigate the cold inefficient bureaucracy of the public health system.
This combined with the normalization of sexual activity at a young age, an acceptance of sin, death, and sickness as part of life, instead of something to be eliminated is a key contrast between US culture and Mexican culture that has lead to a very different experience and relationship with gay sex, risk, desire, and sexually transmitted disease.
Many of my ideas surrounding the difference between the state of the HIV epidemic in the United States and Mexico I actually developed by reading the first chapter of the book Labyrinth of Solitude, by Octavio Paz.
Paz wrote this book to discover for himself what it meant to be Mexican. It has helped me a lot in understanding my experience here.
Coming to terms with the relationship between gay sex, the desire for it, the places that promote it, the sickness that results from it, and the humanity that demands it, is not something that the gay community has accomplished yet.
I hope that my work can help this process along by elevating and presenting gay communities from around the world. I hope we can learn from our differences and from our similarities.
The Famous Galleries of San Miguel Chapultepec
Here is a list of some of the most famous Art Galleries in Mexico City’s infamous San Miguel Chapultepec. I encourage you to knock on the door of all of them, especially the ones who say they are closed on Monday.
Mexico City Art Gallery – San Miguel Chapultepec
Mexican Art Gallery (GAM)
Beautiful Gallery in a beautiful colonial house. Check website to see if they are having an active exhibition. If not, they probability won’t even let you inside. If so, and they have not taken it down prematurely, you have a chance.
Kurimanzutto
This is one of the most famous galleries in the neighborhood. It is also the only one that has arbitrarily decided to close on Mondays.
Since the museums seem to be doing it, why not us, I guess is their philosophy.
I’ve knocked on their door on a Monday and been greeted by a security guard who refused to let me in, even though the exhibition is one room and he could have easily supervised me from where he was standing to be sure I didn’t ruin anything.
I really hope they decide to open on Monday, because it would not cost them a thing to do so, but I’m not holding my breadth.
MASA Gallery
Website (a little glitchy but entirely in English)
OK so I was wrong, MASA has also decided to close on Monday, however, in their defense, they are offering a guided tour on the other days of the week.
For me this makes a big difference because you can book an appointment for a tour on their website and have a guaranteed good experience, which in this neighborhood, is a big deal.
Since this gallery cannot help you fill up your Monday Itinerary, I think your best bet is to do this in conjunction with a visit to the Chapultepec Castle (Also closed on Monday). Plan to head to the castle in the morning, and book your tour for the afternoon. You can walk through Chapultepec park and get to the neighborhood through the rear entrance/Exit of Chapultepec Park (google maps will show you).
The combination of Chapultepec Castle and this San Miguel Chapultepec Walk would make for a fabulous afternoon in Mexico City.
English Article about the First Inaugural Exhibition of this Gallery in 2019.
Galería Enrique Guerrero
So if you read my intro, where I bitterly shared about the well dressed woman who opened the door, didn’t greet me, let me in, and stared at her cell phone while I walked around the empty gallery only to find out for myself that there was no are on display at the moment . . .
. . . this is where that was.
The gallery space was beautiful and if you look at their website, you’ll find that they’ve hosted some amazing exhibitions. Like all the galleries on this list, I’m putting them on here because they’re famous and there is a good chance you’ll discover something worthwhile here.
Patricia Conde Galería Photography
If you love Photography, I really hope you can make it here to this gallery.
This is the principal Mexican Gallery that focuses specifically on Photography; Both Mexican and International.
They have been a consistent exhibitor at many of the top art fairs such as Zona Maco, Context Maimi, and Paris Photo.
Maison Diez Company
I love the space at this gallery. It has an empty swimming pool with a warehouse vibe to it. There is just so much potential to do cool things here.
While not really a ‘famous’ gallery, I include it because it is always possible that a cool pop will be happening here.
So check out the address above while you’re in the neighborhood and I hope you find a hidden gem.
