Local contemporary art exhibit features works by UTSA artists
(July 20, 2004)--The San Antonio art exhibit "Arte Contemporaneo" features more than 30 artists from Texas, New Mexico, Colorado and California, half of whom have UTSA connections.
As part of Contemporary Art Month, "Arte Contemporaneo" is open through Aug. 13 at the Centro Cultural Aztlan in Las Palmas Mall, 803 Castroville Rd., Suite 402. Exhibit hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday, with weekend viewings by appointment.
The diverse body of contemporary art includes paintings, drawings, prints, photographs, digital works, sculptures, installations and mixed media works.
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RSS FeedsPictured from the exhibit are (top) "Yo Immigrante: Coming to America, 1957" (2004), a giclee print by Dan Guajardo made from a photograph taken by the artist's father in 1957, and "The Grace of Strength" (2004), a mixed media collage in black and white by Jerry Cabrera.
"Most of the pieces in this show by established and emerging artists were done in the last two years," said Ruben Cordova, exhibit curator and UTSA assistant professor of art history and criticism. "Some were made specifically for this exhibition."
Exhibit artists with UTSA connections are art department faculty members Ricky Armendariz and Richard Martinez; graduates Steve Arredondo, Dayna De Hoyos, Dan Guajardo, Marcy McChesney, Juan Ramos (also a staff member), Clif Tinker and Kathy Vargas; students Jerry Cabrera, Xavier Garza and Jason Stout; former students Quintin Gonzalez and Alex Rubio; and former visiting artist Cesar Martinez.
The art pieces are based on a range of themes including Roman Catholic upbringing, Chicano style and glamour, the search for divine grace, immigration to America and Aztec mythology.
The exhibition highlights two iconic works of Chicano art: an offset lithograph poster by Yolanda M. Lopez called "Who's the Illegal Alien, Pilgrim?" printed in 1981 after a pen and ink from 1978, and "Coscolina con Muerto" (Flirt with Death), 1986, a lithograph by Luis Jimenez.
"Sweet As Hell," a mixed media installation by Marcy McChesney, fills a small window at the gallery. According to the artist, the project deals with "the consumption and identification of pre-packaged, popular items that signify a particular event in American culture."
In the piece, McChesney uses hundreds of pink Easter bunny marshmallows known as Peeps to alter the perception of the childhood holiday staple.
Luis "Chispas" Guerrero's "Chispa-rama" is a dioramic installation in the gallery's large exterior window consisting of welded metal taken from salvaged automobiles and trucks in the attempt to embody myths and memories.
Centro Cultural Aztlan of San Antonio develops and promotes art and culture through various programs. Aztlan is the name of the mystical land in Ixachilan, or the Americas, where the legendary nomadic seven tribes of the Nahual-speaking Indians started their pilgrimage south. Among the seven tribes were the Aztekahs who founded Tenochtitlan, present day Mexico City.
For more information, contact Malena Gonzalez-Cid, Centro Cultural Aztlan executive director, at 210-432-1896 or e-mail ccaztlan@swbell.net.