Art and representation in sites of memory: aesthetic tensions and the transmission of Argentina’s recent past

Abstract

This article examines how contemporary disputes over the representation of Argentina’s last dictatorship (1976–1983) are negotiated through artistic practices developed in sites of memory in the city of La Plata, Buenos Aires Province. The aim is to analyze the aesthetic decisions, processes of collective debate, and pedagogical challenges involved in the production of two murals located in public health institutions. Methodologically, the study adopts a qualitative approach combining fieldwork, interviews, and iconographic analysis of the artworks. The inquiry is organized around three interrelated dimensions -aesthetic, procedural, and pedagogical- which make it possible to understand both the formal choices and the tensions that emerged during their production and in their projected modes of public transmission. The findings show that disputes over the representation of horror are not resolved solely at the theoretical level but unfold through concrete processes of negotiation among actors with diverse expectations. Furthermore, the pedagogical dimension, central to these spaces, tends to receive less reflection than aesthetic discussions, which affects the conditions under which the murals become intelligible in the public sphere.