"My proposal goes beyond recovering these icons of lettering, by anonymous rotulists, that formed part of the identity and memory of communities in 60s thru to the 80s, by using a pop of character to intervene and convert them into a work of art.”

 

This collection is the culmination of many years of experimental technique, and an observance of a country in flux- Mexico. «It is a proposal for restoration and conservation. The aesthetic emerges from the convergence of the modern and the old, resisting a categorization within a genre, and inviting the observer to return to a not too distant past.» Romero accomplishes this through a process called “strappo” which is used by anthropologists and conservators to detach paintings and murals from walls. Romero applies this technique to the facades of urban buildings throughout Mexico, those that are decrepit and deteriorating, “Trapping it, appropriating it, and endowing it with transcendence and perpetuity.”

 

Once utilizing the strappo technique in order to lift portions of a building’s facade, the artist lays them down on cotton canvas, sometimes applying gold-leaf or paint. The resulting artworks are memorials of iconic advertisements from the 1960’s-80’s. These works are testaments to Mexican culture. Romero aims to intervene in the natural destruction of old buildings and advertisements, as he believes they not only represent important periods of history, but also serve as beautiful pieces of art.