It's all about Latin America

Sadly, I had to miss the "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Chinese Art" lecture, but am now gearing up for tomorrow's VIP Preview of the new Latin American Art Fair in town. Mind you, this one is better timed, as it, unlike the Orientalist, oops I meant Asian, coincides with the auctions. Well played. Now this particular fair is called PINTA. Which I guess is good because on the one hand, we want to get away from reductive nationalist/essesntialist/geographic/homogeneizing categories. Though not so much that the native informants or cultural brokers are unable to take care of bizness. What I would like to know is, why Pinta? Is it a sly reference to one of Columbus' vessels, the Nin~a, the Pinta, the Santa Maria? Is it a pun on the Spanish word for "paint"? Maybe tomorrow I will find some answers, and let's hope the gallery boys are as handsome as the ones at the Asian Fair!