Asco's "Slasher #9," from 1975.

Asco: Elite of the Obscure, A Retrospective, 1972–1987 is the first retrospective to present the wide-ranging work of the Chicano performance and conceptual art group Asco. Asco (1972–1987) began as a tight-knit core group of artists from East Los Angeles composed of Harry Gamboa Jr., Gronk, Willie Herrón, and Patssi Valdez.

Taking their name from the forceful word for disgust and nausea in Spanish, Asco set about through performance, public art, and multimedia to respond to turbulent socio-political periods in Los Angeles and within the larger international context. The art collective remained active until the mid-1980s, contracting and expanding to include artists and performers such as Diane Gamboa, Sean Carrillo, Daniel J. Martinez, and Teddy Sandoval, among others.

The Asco exhibit will be open beginning this Saturday, February 4 through July 29, 2012. Please see the Williams College Museum of Art website here for further details. 

C. Ondine Chavoya, Associate Professor of Art and Latina/o Studies, and and Rita Gonzalez, Associate Curator of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art. photos by Suzanne Silitch

Upcoming events include:

On Friday March 2, 2012 there will be an opening celebration for the exhibition at the Williams College Museum of Art. The celebration will begin with a curatorial walk-through of the exhibition at 4:30 pm with C. Ondine Chavoya, Associate Professor of Art and Latina/o Studies, and and Rita Gonzalez, Associate Curator of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art. There will then be a reception with the Artists from 5:30 to 7:00 pm.

On Saturday March 3, 2012 there will be a Symposium on Asco: Elite of the Obscure, from 1:00  - 5:30 pm. The symposium will include conversations with artists Sean Carrillo, Harry Gamboa, Jr., Willie F. Herrón III, Patssi Valdez and scholars Colin Gunckel, Amelia Jones, Amalia Mesa-Bains, and Mario Ontiveros. Moderated by co-curators C. Ondine Chavoya and Rita Gonzalez.