artista del mes: hugo ortega

Hugo, F and I go way, way back, and as time has gone by, we've remained good friends. It is important to disclose this bit of information, because it may be easy to think there could be a lack of objectivity in my words. There is not.

The truth is we've always admired Hugo's work, mainly because he is the ultimate undaunted, restless artist.  The images shown, represent only a snippet of his incredibly vast and diverse body of work. Every time we touch base with him, it seems he is onto something new, always testing the limits of his creative endeavours.

©Hugo Ortega, Mexican Colors #2, oil on panel, 48 x 72 in, 2013

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Born in Mexico City, Hugo Ortega’s commitment to the production of art and non-functional objects, is heavily influenced by an abstract mathematical perspective, developed during his undergraduate studies in Industrial Design at the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Azcapotzalco, in Mexico City. In 1993, as a Fulbright scholar, he pursued a Masters of Fine Arts, Fiber Arts, at the Savannah College of Art and Design. While at SCAD, his creative process mutated from detailed, time-consuming textile constructions (tapestry weaving), into an immediate expressive act of mixed-media acrylic paintings. After graduation he returned to Mexico City to continue his professional endeavours as a designer, educator and assemblage artist.

In 1999 he was awarded a second Fulbright fellowship (one of the few artist/academics in the world to be bestowed with this distinction) to pursue doctoral studies in Art and Art Education at Columbia University, in New York City. His doctoral investigations have been shaped by what happens in and through studio practice.

He has been exhibiting since 1985, participating with fiber art, paintings, drawings, digital art and videos in more than fifty group exhibitions in Mexico, Japan, Germany, India and the United States; and eight solo exhibitions in Mexico City and New York City. He also has a wide experience as a curator and gallery consultant in Mexico and the United States.

Currently, his studio practice emerges from the exploration and manipulation of limited material resources. The creative process is based on reiterative cycles of composition in an attempt to evolve artistic forms through a philosophy of proximity and implementation. The strategies of action remain the same across mediums and everyday events.

He lives in northern México where he owns and runs an open studio gallery.

IN HIS OWN WORDS: ON PAINTING

"Painting is instinctual, a way of doing things, an anxiety that lively plays by going back and forth between intriguing abstractions with intense color and the figurative silent reality stylistically graphic. The process defines the artwork; first, it incorporates strong sudden repetitive strokes that emerge sometimes from frustration or not knowing what will be painted, but define and determine where to go. Afterwards, as any idea becomes clear, the visual noise of the strokes is silenced by the brush's manners that softly difuse the composition."--Hugo Ortega

IN MY OWN WORDS: REGARDING HUGO ORTEGA'S RECENT OEUVRE 

Succinctly said: Powerful, moving, engaging and incredibly prolific. The moment boldly captured in the charged eloquence and zealousness of each brushstroke.

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©Hugo Ortega, Building Blocks Blue #1, oil on panel, 48 x 48 in, 2013

©Hugo Ortega, Houses, oil on wood, 36 x 36 in, 2012

©Hugo Ortega, City Dwelling, 26 x 22 in, 2011

©Hugo Ortega, Sailing into the Hudson, oil on wood, 48 x 48 in, 2010

©Hugo Ortega, Paisaje Inquieto / Restless Seascape, oil on canvas, 39 x 31.5 in, 2009

©Hugo Ortega, Paisaje y Flores en Verde, oil on wood, 36 x 36 in, 200

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http://www.hugo-ortega.com

info@hugo-ortega.com

marimekko in town

First Frida and Diego at the AGO, now Marimekko, With Love at the Textile Museum... Toronto keeps us well entertained and educated.

For those not familiar with the Finnish company, Marimekko is one of the most iconographic textile houses since the early 50's, when it took the world by storm under the vigilant eye of Armi Ratia and the extraordinary group of designers she recruited to help her launch and establish her vision. One of the most representative designs? Maija Isola's Unikko in red.

Unikko by Maija Isola for Marimekko, 1965.

I have no recollection of when my infatuation with the brand started, I know however, that it was something akin to what the Italians mean when they say "colpo di fulmine". The moment I set eyes on those bold, colourful, unassumingly beautiful designs, I was hooked for life.

MARIMEKKO INSPIRED
During our members meeting at CTS, Rachel suggested we offered a workshop at the studio to tie-in with the Marimekko show at the Textile Museum, and I'm very happy to say I will be teaching it, yay! So in the spirit of it all, Monday, last week, I visited the exhibit, which by the way, had only been open for a couple of hours. It was most interesting to learn about Karelia, the Toronto link with Marimekko from the very late 50's to the late 70's. After the show, and while waiting in the car for E to come out of school, I doodled three designs in my notebook, two of which I knew were ready to go. Just like that! Marimekko inspired, indeed.

Sunday was spent at the studio, finishing films, shooting screens and printing a few samples  of one of the designs in very different colourways, I named it "pebbles".

I'm posting the process, from ideation to print: 1-as a memory of this swift project which helped  review the steps involved in the printing process with my Monday class, 2-to gain insight regarding the outline and content for the workshop, 3-to procure a production-ready design.

Preliminary sketches in the pages of my "handbag" notebook. Hardware equipment: A letter-size photocopier. The design was scaled up to fit comfortably within the screen. Positives (or films) high-tech tools: Mylar, India ink in a chopstick and brush marker, opaque marker, fine sharpie, scissors, utility knife, yellow colour pencil, Canson black paper (for the ground color) and double-sided tape.

Screens shot, no touch-ups necessary. Plenty of tape is needed to mask the edges.

The ground colour (orange) is printed first. Once dry, the outline colour (red) is printed on top. The mysterious object on the side of the screen on the top left image is a brick covered in plastic bags. It helps hold the screen down so it doesn't shift during printing.

Printed samples, in various colourways. The preliminary palettes came from card stock in very vivid colours.

I now need to figure out end-uses (besides pillows), any ideas?

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when I'm 64...*

...or 66, I want to have Bowie's inventive fortitude.
He was all over the CBC this morning because of his 66th birthday, and most importantly, because he released a new song after 10 years! Apparently nobody saw it coming, and apparently, we are all loving it.

Bowie has been in my mind for a while since learning about his traveling exhibition David Bowie Is (which will open in Toronto in September!!) and today, these musings and the date collided in amicable conversation, providing the perfect opportunity for a quick reflection, injected with Bowie's creative eccentricities. The following video (found it in youtube) is testimony of how he's never been one for remaining stagnant.

David Bowie, Ziggy Stardust, from his album "The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars",  1972

I love the Bowie of today, however, I've forever been star-struck by his Ziggy era (which I became aware of a few years after its debut, in my teens).

Bowie, always ahead of his time.

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FINAL REFLECTION: Music has always been the natural propeller of my days. DB's birthday made me look back into old "anthems" and role models, not because I want to hold on to a chimera, but because they are an important part of who I am. Thanks to such deliberations, this "Cranberries" gem was unburied from the NPR music archives.

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*The title for today's post "when I'm 64" makes reference the The Beatles song, from 1967.

2013

F, my husband, is a very intelligent man. He is also extremely insightful, incredibly pragmatic, creative and has an excellent sense of humour. It is important to mention these very colourful traits of his to give some context to our latest tête-à-tête regarding New Year resolutions. Without going into much detail, we debated around the advantages and disadvantages of making  a resolution versus setting a goal (short-term, long-term, it doesn't matter). The conclusion: Even with the best of intentions, the former is always very easily abandoned, while the latter is realistically achievable. He won.

 

My best wishes for an excellent 2013. ¡Feliz Año!

Ana Torroja, Un Año Más, from Mecano's 1988 album "Descanso Dominical".

Girados concert, with Miguel Bosé. Coliseo La Coruña, 2000.