At the height of the military dictatorship—at a time when the country was more inclined to embrace oblivion or indifference as defense mechanisms in the service of self-censorship—the death of the artist Carlos Fossatti (1928–80) prompted the members of the CGM (Club de Grabado de Montevideo) to reactivate the act of remembering, not just as a way to honor their moral debt to a deceased colleague, but as a form of political action woven into a variety of strategies. Fossatti was one of the main promoters of the CGM in the mid-1960s, and in this text that appeared in the Boletín in May-June 1981, the Club sought to remember one of the “most valuable Uruguayan printmakers.” The (anonymous) writer of the article attempts to trigger the reader’s memory in various ways, mainly by inviting the group’s members to enjoy the personal and intimate experience of digging back through the CGM’s old “monthly mailings” to recall the six decades of Fossatti’s art, contrasting very different periods over the course of time. The writer also discusses Fossatti’s techniques and subject matter, his formats, black and white contrasts, urban perspective, and humor. Finally, he suggests holding a group exhibition in their colleague’s honor, juxtaposing Fossatti’s prints and woodcut blocks with works by other artists to create a dialogue between them all. The project recalls the CGM’s original group objectives, and provides a way to review different periods in the association’s history and in the history of the country as a whole. The idea of the tribute to Fossatti is important in a historical sense because it is one of the first attempts to reconstruct (through the symbolic exercise of art) the temporary and social disruption caused by the military dictatorship.
[As complementary reading see, in the ICAA digital archive, the following texts published by the Club de Grabado de Montevideo: “Concurso de grabado para edición” (doc. no. 863481); “13 años de actividad de Club de Grabado de Montevideo” (doc. no. 1183571); “El arte correo en el Uruguay” (doc. no. 1191850); “Boletín N° 7 Club de Grabado de Montevideo” (doc. no. 1182833); “Club de Grabado compra su casa” (doc. no. 1192649); “Club de Grabado de Montevideo 22 Aniversario 1953 - Agosto 1975” (doc. no. 1183514); “Club de Grabado de Montevideo a la población de Montevideo” (doc. no. 1183124); “Cuando el Tercer Mundo se mira a sí mismo. II Bienal de La Habana” (doc. no. 1184459); “De los grabados de ayer a las ediciones actuales” (doc. no. 1191787); “Definiciones / Uno” (doc. no. 1189065); “Entrevista a Luis Mazzey” (doc. no. 1186991); “Entrevista a Óscar Ferrando” (doc. no. 1186747); “Entrevista a Óscar Ferrando [segunda parte]” (doc. no. 1186802); “Fundamentos a propósito de su 22 aniversario” (doc. no. 1182640); “Mini Grabado Internacional de Cadaqués. España” (doc. no. 1191135); “La necesidad de la imaginación” (doc. no. 1190793); “Nuestra institución” (doc. no. 1182010); “Los nuevos movimientos de las artes” (doc. no. 1182868); “Opiniones (I)” (doc. no. 1185411); “Palabras de clausura para un año de apertura” (doc. no. 1191167); “Referencias sobre identidad, cultura y arte en Latinoamérica” (doc. no. 1183641); “Reflexiones en torno a la supuesta crisis de las artes plásticas” (doc. no. 1185539); and “Sobre el papel de la crítica” (doc. no. 1187071)].