Before Banksy, Chicano artists ASCO changed the street art game

What you know about the Asco art collective? New York’s new school through Warhol, Basquiat etc. get quite a bit of attention, for good reason, but at the same time on the west coast, Chicano artists and Latinos were pursuing what I would argue is a much more ambitious creative agenda. It’s irresponsible to tell the story of the Latino civil rights without including to some degree the artists who formed a part of it and therein lies what sets apart Latino art from LA in the 1950’s — 1980’s and beyond. For Chicanos and Latinos, the battle over visibility, identity and even equality was fought not just through protests and marches, but equally through art and specifically street art.

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