From the multi-colored storefronts to the turquoise-colored housing projects, the clash of colorful imagery that is neither Mexico nor the U.S., surrounded and influenced my young eyes, but it was not until I was older that I began to see the juxtaposition of festivity and misery. While crossing the border I recognized the poor and the homeless— women, children and invalids with outstretched hands and styrofoam cups on the sidewalks and the puente in Reynosa. These images cannot, however, be separated from the lively bustle of the mercado, a place of both hope and desperation, a place where colors, smells, and sounds meet in a dance of misery and joy en la frontera. Although my family was better off than those on the bridges, I did grow up in La Paloma, a barrio composed mainly of three-room frame houses and hand-to-mouth subsistence. I was close to, yet very far away from the poverty and suffering that I saw.
I wanted to be an astronaut when I was a kid. I remember watching men land on the moon in ’69 and wanting to explore unknown worlds on my own Apollo Mission. Because of a hearing loss that was not discovered until the 6th grade, it was easy for me to retreat into my imagination and draw pictures of rockets, planets and strange animals. Although I never made it into space, my mission on earth has always been to make art.
Born in 1966, I have lived most of my life in McAllen, Texas (en la Frontera del Valle del Rio Grande). But my roots to this region go back to 1914 when my father and his family escaped from one of the many revolutions in Mexico to the U.S. My father experienced the evolution of El Valle from muddy streets with hitching posts to crowded avenues with a shortage of parking spaces and too much concrete. His attitude and experiences, particularly his cuentos, have taught me the value of making the best of things. He taught me to adapt, a necessary trait for bicultural survival. I also remember watching my mother paint figurines for her ceramic/flower shop. Eventually, my brothers and I helped her prepare and paint clay figurines that she sold to local department stores for birthdays and graduations; we also helped her arrange straw and silk-flowered wreaths for Mother’s and Father’s Day and Dia de los Muertos.
Artist Statement
The conflict between the real world (conscious thought) and the unreal world (unconscious thought) is both universal and timeless. It is a theme that can be found in modern popular culture as well as ancient mythology, a theme that has inspired me as an artist.
The image of maquiladoras resting on top of the Quetzacoatl’s head, for example, is an attempt to reconcile my own fears, hopes, and dreams about the future, a future that will be determined by the conscious and unconscious actions of both the past and present.
The exploration and linking of mythological iconography through time and space is, for me, a means to insight via hindsight, a way of removing the aforementioned ‘mind splinter’. In other words, I create order to see the world more clearly.
Although we are unique individuals with the ability to choose our perspectives, I also believe in the idea of a collective unconscious. This state, while typically activated at night in dreams, can also be realized in the conscious creation and viewing of everyday images.
—Luis Valderas
"All Roads Lead to America" 26" x 17" -limited edition lithograph
"Adelante Mission" Sculpture Project
Just completed (05.06.06) and available for purchase!
"Volando Como Cuauhtémoc"
8' x 4'
limited edition woodcut
( # 4/5 shown above )
Curriulum Vitea - Updated December 06
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Education:
BFA Art Education, University of Texas-Pan American
—Edinburg, Texas. 1995.
Visual Arts Program, Art Institute of Dallas
—Dallas, Texas 89/90.
Selected Solo Exhibits:
2006
El Sol y La Luna
"Luis Valderas : Selections from the PAX AMERICANA Series"—Austin, Texas.
2005
Southwest School of Arts & Crafts
"Luis Valderas : Selections from the Meso-Morphine Series"—San Antonio, Texas.
2003
Gallista Gallery
"Meso-Morphine: PAX AMERICANA and Other Myths"—San Antonio, Texas.
2002
1906-Gallery
"Meso-Morphine: Sueños de la Paz" —San Antonio, Texas.
University of Texas—Pan American
"Meso-Morphine: Sueños de la Muerte" —Edinburg, Texas.
Gallista Gallery
"Meso-Morphine: Gods, Beasts, & Rockets"—San Antonio, Texas.
1996 to 2003
University of Texas-Pan American
5 large scale Steel Sculpture on Grounds —Edinburg, Texas.
1995
University of Texas-Pan American
"Abrasos De Acero-Recent Steel Sculptures" —Edinburg, Texas.
1993
National Gang Peace Conference, McAllen Civic Center
"El Hombre en el Universo" —McAllen, Texas.
Selected Group Exhibits:
2006
Centro Cultural Aztlan
"Virgen de Guadalupe Exhibit"—San Antonio, Texas.
Gallista Gallery
“Que Friega”—San Antonio, Texas
Gallista Gallery
“Project:MASA#2”—San Antonio, Texas.
Gallista Gallery
“La Llorrona y El Chupacabras”—San Antonio, Texas.
Medellin Museum of Contemporary Art
“Chicano Artists & Columbian Artist"—Medellin, Columbia.
University of Texas-Brownsville-Richardson Gallery
“Four Emerging Artist” "—Brownsville, Texas.
Centro Cultural Aztlan
"Nuestras Caras/Our Faces"—San Antonio, Texas.
2005
Gallista Arts Complex
"Project:MASA #1"—San Antonio, Texas.
Arizona State University-Gammage Auditorium
"Triumph of Our Communities : Contemporary Mexican American Artists"—Phoenix, Arizona.
Blue Star Contemporary Arts Center
"San Antonio Painting 2005 Part-I"—San Antonio, Texas.
2004
St. Edwards University Ragsdale Center
"Recuerdos; Dia de los Muertos Exhibit"—Austin, Texas.
Gallista Arts Complex
"Viva La Muerte-II"—San Antonio, Texas.
Blue Star Contemporary Arts Center
"Dia de los Muertos Altares/Installations"—San Antonio, Texas.
Narciso Martinez Cultural Center
"Quatro del Valle"—San Benito, Texas.
Latino Cultural Art Center
"Sam Coronado Studios Serie Project XI"—Dallas, Texas.
Centro Cultural Aztlan
"San Antonio Contemporary Art Month: Arte Chicano"—San Antonio, Texas.
Bath House Cultural Center
"La Loteria"—Dallas, Texas.
The Ice House Cultural Center
"Con/Safos de Tejas"—Dallas, Texas.
UT- Austin , Center for Mexican American Studies
"Sam Coronado Studios Serie Project XI Inaugural Art Exhibit"—Austin, Texas.
Mesa Southwest Museum
"Chicano Art for Our Millennium"—Phoenix, Arizona.
Centro Cultural Aztlan
"Cicatriz de la Tierra"—San Antonio, Texas.
2003
Mexic-Arte Museum
"Collecting Latino Art"—Austin, Texas.
Gallista Gallery
"Viva La Muerte"—San Antonio, Texas.
University of Texas—San Antonio
"Senator Gregory Luna Endowment Art Auction"—San Antonio, Texas.
University of Texas—Pan American
"Virgin of Guadalupe Sculpture 10th Anniversary Exhibit"—Edinburg, Texas.
University of Texas—San Antonio
"Hispanic Heritige Month Exhibit"—San Antonio, Texas.
The Women's Museum-State Fair of Texas
"Mundo Latino"—Dallas, Texas.
Latino Cultural Art Center
"Inaugural Exhibition"—Dallas, Texas.
International Museum of Arts & Science
"Arte Rio Grande"—McAllen, Texas.
Gallista Gallery
"Puro Gallo"—San Antonio, Texas.
University of Texas-Pan American
"Alumni Exhibit"—Edinburg, Texas.
2002
Mexic-Arte Museum
"Nuestras Tradiciones-III" —Austin, Texas.
1906-Gallery
"Altares in a Box"—San Antonio, Texas.
SouthTown Mainstreet Alliance of San Antonio
"Art in the Hood" —San Antonio, Texas.
International Museum of Arts & Science
"Art on the Move: The Automobile"—McAllen, Texas.
2001
Mexic-Arte Museum
"Nuestras Tradiciones-II" —Austin, Texas.
Gallista Gallery
"Dia de los Muertos" —San Antonio, Texas.
Donna Hooks-Carver Museum
"Dia de los Muertos" —Donna, Texas.
Aye Chispas! Gallery
"El Chupacabras" —San Antonio, Texas.
San Anto Cultural Center
"Huevos Rancheros Gala"—San Antonio, Texas.
UTSA Downtown Campus
"National Hispanic Month Exhibit" —San Antonio, Texas.
Agora Gallery
"Material & Concept" —SOHO New York City.
Morton Myerson Symphony Hall
"Hispanic Festival / Dallas Cathedral" —Dallas, Texas.
NorthPark Mall -NorthPark Center
"NorthPark 2001-Texas Sculpture Association Exhibit"—Dallas,Texas.
Gallista Gallery
"Loteria-Mexican Bingo"—San Antonio, Texas.
McAllen International Museum
"Arte Rio Grande: A Contemporary Art Exhibit"—McAllen, Texas.
2000
Agora Gallery
"Soho International Art Competition" —SOHO New York City.
1999
Talento Bilingue de Houston
"Loteria" —Houston, Texas.
Casa de la Cultura
"Dos Lados del Rio" —Reynosa, Tamps. Mexico.
Narciso Martinez Cultural Art Center
"Saints and Healers" —San Benito, Texas.
Millennium - The Gallery
"Arte Rio Grande 2" —McAllen, Texas.
1998
Studio 1514-B Contemporary Art Gallery
"Cosechas lo que Siembras - You Reap What You Sow" — McAllen, Texas.
Nuevo Santander -Art Gallery
"Mujeres Unidas / International Bank of Commerce-Art From the Heart"—McAllen, Texas.
Storefront Arts Foundation
"Birds In My Head" —Corpus Christi, Texas.
1997
Art Museum of So. Texas / So. Texas Institute for the Arts
" El Arte Nunca Muere - Art Never Dies" —Corpus Christi, Texas.
Centro Cultural Mexicano / Mexican Consulate in McAllen
"Exhibicion Anual de las Artes Hispanicas" — McAllen, Texas.
Centro Cultural Mexicano / Mexican Consulate in McAllen
"Fiesta de La Muerte" — McAllen, Texas.
1996
Museo Historico de Reynosa
"Festival de la Frontera" —Reynosa,Tamps.Mexico.
1995
University of Texas Pan American
"Annual Art Exhibit" —Edinburg,Texas.
Cultural Center for Hispanic Art
"Arte de la Frontera" —McAllen,Texas.
1994
Space 1311 Contemporary Art Gallery
"The Distance Between Two Points" —McAllen,Texas.
Mexican Consulate McAllen
"Artes Hispanas del Valle de Tejas" —McAllen,Texas.
University of Texas Pan American
"Annual Art Exhibit" —Edinburg,Texas.
Publications:
Chicano Art for Our Millennium: Collected Works from the Arizona State University Community
-Bilingual Review Press
Triumph of Our Communities: Four Decades of Mexican American Art
-Bilingual Review Press
Latin Cultural Center 2003 Inaugural Juried Exhibition of Dallas-Fort Worth Latino Artists Catalogue
- City of Dallas Publication
Public Collections:
University of Texas-San Antonio- San Antonio, Texas
Arizona State University- Tempe, Arizona
International Museum of Art and Science- McAllen. Texas
Mexic-Arte Museum- Austin, Texas
Art Museum of South Texas- Corpus Christi, Texas
Insituto For Latino Studies/Notre Dame- Notre Dame, Indiana
Current Gallery Affiliations:
Gallista Gallery- Artist/Curator
1913 South Flores, San Antonio, Texas 78204 (210) 212-8606
Coronado Studio-Board Member
6601 Felix Ave. Austin, Texas 78741 (521) 385-3591
References Available Upon Request
