Anibal Lopez-- One Ton of Books Dumped on Reforma Avenue Favorite 

Practitioner: 

Date: 

Jan 3 2003

Location: 

Guatemala City, Guatemala

Aníbal López, also known by his government identification number A-153167, is a pioneer of performance art in Central America. ArtBus describes his work as, "Generally aimed at immersing viewers into the region’s social and political tensions, his works combine the dry language of 1960/1970s conceptual art with the revolutionary ethos of a Latin American guerrillero. Turning his native Guatemala City into a stage for urban interventions, López engages unwitting passersby disrupting cultural codes and challenging institutional power."

In 2003, López dumped exactly one ton of books in a busy intersection in Guatemala City. The books caused traffic jams, yet were swept away quickly by passerby's. According to ArtBus, the work was a" blatant act of vandalism, the blockade was quickly cleared away as pedestrians rushed to pick up books. Evidently alluding to Smithson’s Asphalt Rundown, López’s urban intervention questioned the high illiteracy rates and unequal access to culture in Guatemala."

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