Essay For An Ese: A Tribute to Chicano Artist José Montoya
Richard Montoya reflects on the life of his father, whose work is on view at the Fowler.
The Fowler Museum exhibition, José Montoya’s Abundant Harvest honors the artist’s prolific work as well as his subject matter in this exhaustive and energetic survey that includes nearly 2,000 drawings along with paintings, poems, sketchbooks, video footage, music, and other ephemera. The artist's son and exhibition co-curator, offers a reflection on his father's life and work.
"Being around my father’s works for the last two years has taught me a great many things, chief among them is that the man, the artist, the teacher keeps teaching long after he has departed this physical world and that he was very present in the room where we curated, where my objectivity was challenged daily -- and rightfully so because I have none! José was not sentimental in the execution of these drawings, and neither should we be in presenting and writing about them.
The sheer number of his drawings -- their epic scale -- defies imagination. When and how did he capture this sea of humanity? The cantinas, the labor camps and fields, the churches, the union halls, the barrio streets, corridors of power, and academia, all called him, but so did more than one movement, a fiery national poetry scene and a man named Cesar, plus a large family with many mouths to feed!
When did he have time to create the portraits of so many? Framing their moment with as few lines as a Beat poet? Perhaps part of the riddle is locked in the economy of his line. He was moving, and so his pen and pencil were as well! There is as much an existential question in these works as there is simplicity and beauty. José was so committed to being On the Road that when he and his compadre Esteban Villa went to the corner for a six-pack, they came back two months later from a cross-country trip that included a sojourn in NYC. Playing their guitarras the entire way! "— Richard Montoya, June 28, 2016
Read the full article at the KCET website.