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The Mexicali Experimental Project features artists, architects, original archives, and photographs that contextualize a self-built 1970's social housing complex developed in Mexico under the guidance of visionary architect Christopher Alexander. My paintings and drawings document the current state of this complex and interpret this site's voluptuous design logic, improvisational orderliness, and devotion to classical form. This project was commissioned by InSite Art Practices in the Public Sphere and curated by Andrea Torreblanca and Felipe Orensanz. Contributors also include artist Pastizal Zamudio, architects Marcel Sanchez and Adriana Cuellar of CRO Studio (San Diego-Tijuana), and original photographic archives by Howard Davis, Dorit Fromm, Peter Bosselmann, and the Christopher Alexander Center for Environmental Structure Archive.

El Proyecto Experimental Mexicali presenta a artistas, arquitectos, archivos originales y fotografías que contextualizan un complejo de viviendas sociales autoconstruido en la década de 1970, desarrollado en México bajo la dirección del visionario arquitecto Christopher Alexander. Mis pinturas y dibujos documentan el estado actual de este complejo e interpretan su voluptuosa lógica de diseño, su orden improvisado y su devoción por las formas clásicas. Este proyecto fue encargado por InSite Art Practices in the Public Sphere y comisariado por Andrea Torreblanca y Felipe Orensanz. También han colaborado el artista Pastizal Zamudio, los arquitectos Marcel Sánchez y Adriana Cuéllar, de CRO Studio (San Diego-Tijuana), y archivos fotográficos originales de Howard Davis, Dorit Fromm, Peter Bosselmann y el Archivo de Estructuras Ambientales del Centro Christopher Alexander.

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The Mexicali Experiment: Columnario, 2025, oil on panel, 11"x14"

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The Mexicali Experiment: Comedor, 2025, oil on panel, 11"x14"

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The Mexicali Experiment: Fachada del patio de constructores, 2025, oil on panel, 11"x14"

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The Mexicali Experiment: Columnas Dignas, 2024, oil on panel, 11"x16"

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The Mexicali Experiment: Arcos Integrados, 2024, oil on panel, 11"x16"

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The Mexicali Experiment: La Casa Japonesa, 2024, oil on panel, 11"x16"

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The Mexicali Experiment: Tejado Festivo, 2024, watercolor on paper, 9"x12"

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The Mexicali Experiment: El Patio de Pastizal, 2024, Prismacolor on paper, 9"x12"

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The Mexicali Experiment: Tres Cumbres, 2024, watercolor on paper, 9"x12"

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The Mexicali Experiment: El Patio de los Constructores, 2024, Prismacolor on paper, 9"x12"

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The Mexicali Experiment: Picos Gemelos, 2024, watercolor on paper, 9"x12"

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The Mexicali Experiment: Bóveda de Cañón, 2024, Prismacolor on paper, 9"x12"

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The Mexicali Experiment: Residencias Remodeladas, 2024, Prismacolor on paper, 9"x12"

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The Mexicali Experiment: Tipologías de ventanas, 2024, Prismacolor on paper, 9"x12"

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The Mexicali Experiment: Solarium y escaleras, 2024, Prismacolor on paper, 9"x12"

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The Mexicali Experiment (installation view, 2024) Bread & Salt Gallery, San Diego, CA

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The Mexicali Experiment (installation view, 2024) Bread & Salt Gallery, San Diego, CA

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The Mexicali Experiment (installation view, 2024) Bread & Salt Gallery, San Diego, CA

mexicali-experiment

The Mexicali Experiment (installation view, 2024) Bread & Salt Gallery, San Diego, CA

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The Mexicali Experiment (installation view, 2024) Bread & Salt Gallery, San Diego, CA

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The Mexicali Experiment (installation view, 2024) Bread & Salt Gallery, San Diego, CA

All images and text © 2025: Cynthia Hooper