Contemporary mural art and sustainability. The use of transmedia strategies to exercice citizenship

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to analyze how contemporary Mexican mural art addresses issues of environmental, political and social sustainability, and how artists use transmedia strategies to exercise citizenship. We use a Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) proposal that is linked to digital ethnography. The corpus is made up of mural works made by 33 of the most prominent artists in Mexico today who address issues of sustainability and who publish their murals in various digital media. The analysis of their murals was based on an exhaustive review of the profile of these artists, to recognize the contextual aspects relevant to the analysis of the works. At first, the issue of environmental, political and social sustainability is addressed, and the importance of citizenship for artists is reflected upon. We see how artists address issues related to climate change, the extinction of endemic species, migration and gender inequalities. Next, the use of strategic transmediality is analyzed. The differentiated use that artists make of the different social networks (Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, etc.) is examined and seven transmedia functions used by artists are highlighted to promote interactivity and dialogue and generate a forum for citizen discussion