Abstract

This article examines the artistic practice of Francisco Papas Fritas within the socio-political context of bicentennial Chile, proposing the concept of resurgence as a lens through which to understand his work. Resurgence is framed here as the emergence of a new form of critical and political art that seeps through the fissures left by official narratives, reactivating contested memories. The artist’s interventions are thus positioned within a broader re-engagement with historical trauma and social resistance, particularly in relation to the 2011 student protests. The analysis is structured into three sections: first, an exploration of memory work and the declassification of archival materials related to the dictatorship and the 2010 San Miguel prison fire; second, an examination of his performative critiques of neoliberalism and institutional authority in the fields of art and culture; and third, a reflection on the political potential of art as a form of protest, disruption, and collective mobilization.