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[[image]][[/image]] IN DON'T-MISS SHOW: "Mother and Child," an oil by María Brito, is part of the "La Luz: Contemporary Latino Art in the United States" exhibition. [[image]][[/image]] GRAFFITI ART: Chaz Bojórquez's "Graffiti Mandala," an acrylic, reveals the true talent behind graffiti art. [[image]][[/image]] IN 50-ARTIST SHOW: "Made in Tijuana," a mixed-media piece by Patssi Valdez, is part of a 50-artist show at the National Hispanic Cultural Center. who try to pigeonhole millions of people who may share a language but certainly do not hold a common lockstep view of the world. Family, church, rural communities, urban communities and universal human emotions are encompassed by this broad 50-artist extravaganza. The show opens with "Untitled (March 5th) #2" consisting of two 40-watt light bulbs dangling together from white extension cords. Taken at face value the work by the late Felix Gonzáles-Torres can be compared to the factory-made fluorescent fixtures of Dan Flavin. The date refers to Gonzáles-Torres' lover's birthday, making the piece a symbol of their relationship. The problem with this type of found-object art is that the viewer needs more information than the work itself imparts. If one were to look at the Sistine Chapel without any knowledge of Christianity, his experience would be quite different from someone who had read the Bible. Luis Cruz Azaceta graphically depicts violence and forced confinement in "Latin American Victims of Dictators, Oppression, Torture and Murder," an acrylic that aptly illustrates the suffering of an individual that speaks to all humanity. Azaceta asks us to identify with the central writhing horizontal figure. In "Codex Espangliensis: from Columbus to the Border Patrol" by Guillermo Gómez-Peña and Felicia Rice, a long fan-fold, illustrated text takes the viewer on a historic journey. I was reminded of the tragic burning of tens of thousands of Mayan codices by Catholic priests during Cortez's invasion of Mexico. The burning of libraries is a disgusting worldwide practice that promotes ignorance and supports intolerance. In contrast, Afredo Arreguín's luscious "The Tree of Life," one of my favorites in the show, is an incredibly patterned, exuberant display of the interconnected nature of life that is filled with surprises. Faces appear out of a jungle filled with monkeys, masks, flowers, trees, vines, birds, snakes and people. The painting clearly illustrates Einstein's concept that matter is energy and compares favorably to Van Gogh's "Starry Night," which also is related to Einstein's thinking. Chaz Bojórquez of Los Angeles celebrates aerosol art in his "Graffiti Mandala," an alphabet piece that implodes the universe. murdered while incarcerated. Her work poignantly illustrates the painful waste of human beings caused by drugs, crime and poverty among disenfranchised people. The uneven application of legal standards leads to the incarceration of a disproportionate percentage of minorities who generally lack funds for competent counsel. Hernández present's a woman's tattooed back to the viewer in her "La Ofrenda I" serigraph. A hand with pricked and bleeding fingers holds a rose in front of the Virgin's image. The Spanish Catholic Church deserve praise for its acceptance, discovery or invention, depending on your point of view, of the Virgin of Guadalupe. That image of a mestizo woman who appeared as the Virgin Mary to Indian peasant Juan Diego in 1531 saved millions of lives. Without that single image to bridge the Spanish and Native American cultures a holocaust may have ensued. María Brito was sent as an infant from Cuba to live in the United States as part of a Catholic Church-sponsored exodus called Operation Pedro Pan during the 1960s. Her classically styled painting of the event is based on Andrea Mantegna's "Presentation at the Temple" painted in 1453. Brito became a scholar and artist because of her mother's sacrifice, but the wound of their separation remains. New Mexican history is well illustrated by Félix A. López in "San Ysidro Labrador," a beautifully carved and painted processional santo depicting the patron saint of farmers. López represents the santero tradition that reaches back to the early days of Spanish settlement. Though confined to New Mexico, santero art is a growing art form that has brought international recognition to local artists. Chimayó weaver Karen V. Martínez offers a vibrantly hued and finely woven "Unidos" tapestry. Her work represents the Rio Grande tradition and was made of churro wool and natural dues. "Unidos" won Best of Show at the 1999 Spanish Market in Santa Fe. Luis Tapia celebrates low riders and santo in his "Porfie's Cruze" sculpture of a pink Cadillac convertible decorated with religious motifs. Los Angeles artists Pattsi Valdez, Gronk, Harry Gamboa Jr. and William Franklin Herrón III were founding members of ASCO, a 1970s arts collaborative. They are back together in the show with "made in Tijuana," a paper flower dress by Valdez, "Tormenta Cantata," a painting created on-site to music by Gronk, and a give-photograph series by Gamboa. Valdez addresses the various regional styles of Mexican dance costumes and dance types with her colorful paper sculpture. Gronk was finishing his performance painting while I visited the gallery. I've been a fan of his raw, expressionistic, brightly colored paintings for several years and was surprised by his new limited palette. I asked him about his work. "I've done six of these paintings to the same music and they are all different. My palette is changing because I've already done bold colors....I recently spoke to a French curator who was very excited by Chicano art. He saw it as a uniquely American art form like jazz and wondered why there wasn't more interest in Chicano art within the United States," Gronk said. The artist touched on an important point made by this exhibition. Chicano art is American art made in America by American artists. Luis Jiménez offers "Sodbuster/San Isidro" with a heroic-scale figure and oxen symbolizing the universal labor of farmers. The plow slices through native American pottery filled with corn to show the roots of our successful farming methods. That broken pot also is emblematic of the often brutal takeover of Indian land by Europeans. Jiménez was a pop artist in New York when the movement was born. His use of fiberglass and automobile paint places him in the pop art tradition. His subject matter celebrates Chicano culture. The show is a wonderful overview of important artists who represent variable views of art, life and American culture. There are some uneven pieces in the show but overall it's exciting and, I hope, destined to travel. It may take an exhibition in Paris or Berlin to awaken some mainstream American critics and curators. Don't miss it while it's still in Albuquerque.
