USA: Mexican and Mexican-American artists shows their roots in a new contemporary art show at a New York City gallery

A New York gallery shows the contemporary works of a group of Mexican and Mexican-American artists. Nuevo Arte: Colección Tequila Don Julio, an exhibition showcasing new works by some of today's most innovative up and coming Mexican and Mexican-American artists is showing at the White Box gallery in New York City. Featuring a variety of media-from teacups to car rim drums and blown glass to painted canvas, the collection highlights the range in contemporary and original artwork. The traveling exhibition was put together by The Mexican Museum, a San Francisco-based non profit organization with an extensive collection of Mexican and Latin-American artwork. Juan Puentes, founder of the Whitebox gallery says he wanted to provide a home for the show in New York, because the show exhibits the best of what is happening with Mexican and Chicano artists right now. He believes that in general, Mexicans are proving to have great influence in the U.S., and thus there couldn't be a better time for this kind of exhibit. Artist Jorge Rojas, whose piece "Cinco Elementos," is a central piece in the exhibit talks about his work and inspiration. Rojas says it's important to him that this kind of exhibition be put on now, to help familiarize Americans with Mexican art and cultural contributions. He says he is pleased the show will travel and enable those outside of New York City to see it as well. Artist Ray Abeyta, whose work "Bomba Barrococo," is also in the exhibit talks about his vision and attempt to blend classical Native American traditions with modern Chicano culture. "The low rider in this case becomes a kind of a empowering vehicle to just not only move yourself through space but to move yourself through space with style, with class, with this like whole you know, Chicanismo kind of thing. So what I wanted to do with this painting was to show this aspect of that connection between this old Colonial style which mixed the European with Native American with contemporary things that are going on now." Nuevo Arte: Colección Tequila Don Julio will be on display through February 3, 2007 at White Box in New York City's Chelsea gallery district. The collection will then move to venues in Houston, Chicago and Los Angeles. Upon completion, the exhibition will be donated to The Mexican Museum, which is currently being constructed in San Francisco's Yerba Buena arts district.

ITN Source | January 19, 2007

Tags:. .february. .vehicle. .modern. .inspiration. .european