The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 16, 2025

Gotta Catch ‘Em All

2016

Michael Menchaca

(American, b. 1985)
printer

Julia Samuels

(American)
publisher

Overpass Projects

(American, 2015-)
color screenprint
Image: 60.5 x 44.1 cm (23 13/16 x 17 3/8 in.); Sheet: 70 x 51.9 cm (27 9/16 x 20 7/16 in.)
Gift of Donald and Toni Scherzer in honor of Jack and Linda Lissauer 2021.185
© Michael Menchaca
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

Michael Menchaca is influenced by the aesthetic of video games; for example, the red, white, and blue round form at upper right is adopted from the Japanese gaming franchise Pokémon.

Description

Texas-based artist Michael Menchaca uses the stacked forms and flattened compositions of Mayan codices—the earliest books in Latin American culture—to comment on current social issues. This print’s title references the popular video game Pokémon but connects its emphasis on capturing with violence on the border and against Black Americans by featuring a group of uniformed men with guns drawn surrounding Mesoamerican bird-headed figures.
  • 2016-2021
    (Overpass Projects, Providence, RI, sold to Toni Scherzer, Shaker Heights, OH)
    2021
    Toni Scherzer, Shaker Heights, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
    2021-
    Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • New Narratives: Contemporary Works on Paper. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 19, 2023-April 14, 2024).
  • {{cite web|title=Gotta Catch ‘Em All|url=false|author=Michael Menchaca, Julia Samuels, Overpass Projects|year=2016|access-date=16 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2021.185